日本財団 図書館


Sheet 100

 

GUIDE TO THE CASE "NO INTERNAL STANDARDS"

 

There are two main problems with the action of the Planning Permission Division.

 

1 They tried to hide their internal standards.

 

In this case, information disclosure is not institutionalized and the policy that exists to disclose information leaves room for each department to judge for themselves whether it is appropriate to disclose information or not. This method of information disclosure is not designed for the benefit of arbitrary judgment by each department. Rather, the department should judge whether or not the information requested includes confidential information or the disclosure of which would infringe on someone's privacy. Only when there is very good reason, should the disclosure of information be refused.

There would appear to be no good reason in this case for confidentiality over their internal standards relating to the environment. They obviously wanted to avoid the criticism that would arise when people scrutinize their internal standards and check whether construction permits in the past had really met with these standards. They were afraid if that should happen, they would have no opportunity to make independent decisions in the future. They denied the existence of these standards to protect their personal, as opposed to public interests.

It is more likely in the future that public administration will be required to disclose information and the standards that they rely on to reach their decisions. Public employees are expected to be accountable for their actions. The pressure of having to explain to the general public why they take such action and an open exchange of opinions with the people will lead to a better and more justifiable decision making process.

 

2 They actively avoided contact with the non-governmental organization.

 

Mr. Horiguchi rejected any contact with the NGO thinking to deal with the general public not directly involved in seeking construction permits was a waste of time. He appeared to be irritated by the fact that people unconnected with his organization were interfering in its operations.

Responding to public inquiries, however, is the duty of each public employee. The view that people should keep silent as long as public officials perform their tasks properly according to the laws and regulations is no longer acceptable. They are expected to perform their public service in a manner conducive to trust by the general public. To do so, each public employee is encouraged to take accountability for their individual actions.

 

 

 

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