PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION CONCEPT: FROM GOVERNMENT TO CITIZENSHIP SECTOR

Abstract

Since 1980s, scholarship on government administration has turned its attention toward developing a new model of public administration, also known as New Public Management (NPM). Encountered with rapid and complex changes, the conventional model, or Old Public Administration (OPA), it is proven to be ineffective and slow to respond. However, NPM is primarily focused on a management model of private sector as well as the reduction of the public sector and decentralization. More importantly, NPM considers people as customers, instead of citizens who are genuinely concerned with public interest. Such assumption is at the heart of New Public Service, an emergent approach that prioritizes citizenship. Traditional models of public administration, as such, are not adequate for contemporary democratic societies. In this sense, Civic Public Administration represents an alternative to such problem through its promotion of civic participation in order for public administration to truly respond to people’s needs. Such approach also addresses the longstanding problem of good governance and supports the creation of Self-Government, which concurs with democratic values and allows for people to become “citizens”. At any rate, while increased civic awareness and participation may signal optimism for Thai society, embedded cultural values must also be critically examined and transformed in order for a new paradigm of citizenship to fully be achieved and become a necessary hand that supports public administration in Thailand.