Stories

Hana Callaghan notes that “The concept that government officials have special ethical obligations to the public is actually quite old. In Ancient Greece Plato called for death for public officials who took bribes.” Callaghan also points out that “Without a duty of accountability, the public’s ability to monitor the behavior of public fiduciaries would be severely limited. From the duty of accountability flow the duty of transparency and the concepts of disclosure, open meetings, and accessibility of public records.”

Director of Government Ethics Program, Hana Callaghan, quoted in The Lakewood Observer.