“When a woman enters into marriage she takes her mother with her.” – Ghanaian proverb
The malfeasance that clogs our societal systems is not only demoralising, but daunting. All around us, unethicality thrives so brilliantly it seems to be the norm. At the same time, the motivation for being ethical is lower than ever, as the end results becomes more and more important than the process.
The Internet of Things continues to expose the ethical disorientation and barrenness of most of our public figures, but many amongst us do not see the need for us to reprimand them. Maybe, just maybe when being ingenuous and seeking truth became a thankless endeavour, many individuals and organisations lose our ethical sensibilities. It is about time we recognise the grave we are digging for ourselves.
The tragedy of our time might well be that too few of us have set ethics apart by intertwining it with the divine and making it seem as impossible an act to live by.
We need to re-educate ourselves of the essence of ethics in our choices and decision, and we need look no further than how we feel when we are at the receiving end, where almost all of us have been. Life in its fullness is meaningless without trust and optimism.
The people trust their leaders to improve their standard of living. Consumers trust that the products and services on offer by organisations would fulfil their needs. Organisations trust these consumers to patronise what they put on offer. Employers trust employees to be genuinely creative and productive, whilst employees trust employers to sufficiently reimburse their efforts. Everywhere you turn in this life, trust stares you in the face.
Trust unswervingly, is critical for every living. Webster’s Dictionary defines trust as the “assured reliance on the character, ability, strength, or truth of someone or something”. Trust is an essential ingredient for living, yet evidence suggests it is waning.
Our spaces are fraught with high levels of corruption, fraud, bribery, squalid gossip, etc. And our society is rife with practices of unethical behaviour. These ethical lapses have not always been intentional, but we need to understand that they have actually enhanced the flexibility with which corruption has exercised it domination over our society.
We all know how tricky and difficult it is, if not impracticable, to have meaningful relationships without trust. Yet time and time again, the surprising majority amongst us have behaved like the proverbial ostrich when issues of ethics come to the fore.
We have become very good at burying our heads in the sand hoping such afflicting issues would wane and ebb. How feasible that is, we all have no idea. Unethical practises in the long run affect trust, the very ingredient we need to thrive and to make meaning.
Ethics and ethical behaviour should not be an afterthought; it should inform our daily, even moment by moment behaviour. That is the most effective way to ensure that the axiom ‘Ghana must work again’ becomes meaningful.
We must all rise above legalism and in the words of our national anthem, be “bold to defend for ever, the cause of freedom and of right.” And we must pray God to “fill our hearts with true humility, and make us cherish fearless and honesty.” That is the surest way to develop an upright and value driven nation.
Thus, we are all obligated to treat all others with respect and dignity. In the opinion of Immanuel Kant, “it is our duty (as Ghanaians) to regard (everything Ghana) as sacred and to respect and maintain them as such,” Such a measure of dignity implores ethical behaviour and an environment that promotes and rewards such acts.
Taking a cue from Karl Marx, such a right should not be based on our ability to assert them, but on our interests and needs as members of a nation bundling along a path of development and prosperity.
Ethics is a multifaceted and thus easier for a lot of us to avoid the subject. Ethical dilemmas occurring in decision-making should be recognised by management and individuals.
However, this complexity should not stop us from addressing the subject and developing virtuous measures for its discussion, resolution, functioning and sustainability.
It beholds on all Ghanaians to display integrity, work productively and relate in a fair and reasonable manner. It is true that many of us operate within the legal requirements of the law. However, legal and ethical concepts are not equivalent.
There are a lot of actions which are perfectly legal, but may not necessarily be the right thing to do. Ethical behaviour extends beyond the letter of the law to its spirit. It links principles and values of communal living to achieving individual, organizational and/or national goals, while doing the right thing, the right way and at the right time in a fast-paced competitive world.
The time to create and sustain an ethical culture is now. It should be part of our cost cutting measures. An ethical citizenry do not only make words and actions accountable to the society, but to themselves as well. We as a nation should foster active and public discussions of ethicality and its practices amongst ourselves in order to generate holistic and sustainable solutions against the malfeasance obstructing our progress.
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Kodwo Brumpon is an executive coach at Polygon Oval, a forward-thinking Pan African management consultancy and social impact firm driven by data analytics, with a focus on understanding the extraordinary potential and needs of organisations and businesses to help them cultivate synergies, that catapults into their strategic growth, and certifies their sustainability.
Comments, suggestions, and requests for talks and training should be sent to him at [email protected]
