Important Documents

18. 7. 201314:35

Government Mission – Service Values and Rules

At the Government’s first meeting, Prime Minister Jiří Rusnok presented the rules to be followed by members of his Cabinet in their everyday duties. These rules set out 15 points encompassing various legal, moral and ethical values related to the cooperation provided by each member of the Government and to the operation of the Cabinet as a whole in dealings with the public and the administration of the state.

1. Primacy of public interest:

• The motivation for those who work for the public must be the aspiration to promote matters of public interest, which must take precedence over private interests or personal gain.
• Group or individual interests may be promoted only where they are of universal benefit and are in keeping with the public interest.
• Invariably, public institutions must be run and posts held in accordance with their mission and objectives, and must not be a vehicle to promote private interests.

2. Respect for freedom, morality, law and justice:

• Our core value centres on people and their freedom, i.e. the chance for them to take their own decisions on their future and to shape their life and the circumstances in which they find themselves, based on their presence of mind and potential.
• As we define freedom not solely as the freedom of the isolated individual, but as the freedom of all people and citizens without discrimination, another of our just as fundamental values is respect for justice and moral and legal rules that allow free individuals to co-exist with each other and guide people to be considerate of one another.
• This respect for rules and the freedom of others hinges primarily on the recognition of the value and dignity of other people and their indefatigable and inalienable human rights.

3. Prosperity, quality of life, sustainability and stability:

• As prosperity is a cornerstone of quality of life, unnecessary obstacles should not be placed in the way of people’s economic activities that do not diverge from the values of morality, law and justice.
• On the other hand, prosperity must not be an end in itself, but should enhance the quality of life and society as a whole.
• A long-term viable (sustainable) society is part and parcel of the public interest. For this reason, the fulfilment of sustainability requirements foreshadows the pursuit of conditions for prosperity and quality of life.
• In the same way, we treat stability – by which we mean a certain ability of society and its safety systems to absorb (withstand) outside influences and discontinuity in order to gain time to adapt – as a public interest.

4. Respect for the truth:

• Our conduct is driven by the eagerness to be as honest and credible as possible. We open-mindedly review whether we are behaving correctly and change tack where appropriate.
• We recognize that we are not judges of what is true and what is false, and that what we think and say can be true only if we strive constantly to identify the truth. No one has a patent to the truth.
• With this in mind, we do not debate in order to convince and impose our own opinions on others, or even to promote vested interests, but to search together for the truth. In doing so, we must constantly and critically appraise whether our and others’ remarks are true or false.

5. Critical thinking:

• Whenever we decide on a specific course of action, look for solutions to problems or set short- and long-term targets, we must know the facts and relevant information and act on the basis of our seasoned acumen and an analysis of the issues.
• Self-criticism is vital as it can weed out flawed assessments of situations and prevent hasty judgements and unseemly responses.
• A mainstay is education, as it enables us to understand the broader picture with critical detachment, rather than succumbing to thought patterns, and to see the options available.
• Solutions that are put forward must pass muster in the face of acutely extensive external evaluation, including criticism by ideological opponents, and where possible their substantive arguments must be incorporated into the resulting solution.

6. Open-mindedness and creativity:

• We will not spurn any ideas, mind-sets or opinions out of hand, and definitely not for ideological reasons. Nothing is taboo for us and we are not prejudiced. Ideas or suggestions may be turned down only after sober discussion.
• We are also responsible people who will not clutter discussion space with ill-thought ideas and immaterial padding; we strive to endow each policy that is tabled with an array of its constituent premises.
• In our search for answers we will not be fettered by ideological stereotyping.
• We are predisposed to new solutions offering flexibility and easy to adapt to changing conditions.
• We are creative and inventive.

7. Expertise and quality:

• The public and the state are not guinea pigs. If it is not broken, we will not fix it. If anything does need changing, we accommodate the long-term perspective and, as far as possible, we reach a consensus across the political spectrum.
• We aim for solutions that are innovative and attractive and that deliver clearly defined added value to the public and the state.
• We respect and apply the following division of labour: politicians decide the right thing to do, while officials, experts and managers decide how, with whom and when to do it. All these groups carry a clearly delineated share of responsibility for such decisions.
• To identify the best concepts and solutions, we collaborate with the most knowledgeable experts at our disposal.
• The changes we advocate and make are fluid and smooth and sidestep any major ruckus or commotion. Step changes are introduced en bloc to switch from one stable state to another as quickly as possible without adverse fallout.

8. Responsibility:

• We are here to serve the public in the most eminent sense of the word, not to gratify our own egos or promote any partisan interests.
• Fully aware of the responsibility that we have assumed, our core personal value is strength of character, which is also reflected in our ability to withstand the (media and personal) pressures that await us.
• The current climate and the aspects of the roles we play dictate that rules and principles on security are of the highest priority. We are prudent, circumspect and discreet.
• The common interest always takes precedence over group or individual interests. We work as a team and pull together.

9. Courage:

• In all likelihood, we can expect some troublesome times. Our opponents will be apprehensive about our success.
• If they put up resistance, we are brave enough to overcome all obstacles. If threatened, we know who to go to and how to ward off these threats effectively.

10. Rules and principles:

• We respect and obey established rules and principles.
• We abide by good manners and behave decently no matter what the circumstances.
• We keep our word!
• We take misconduct seriously and are uncompromising and principled in important issues.

11. Transparency:

• We answer questions openly.
• If information is confidential, we will clearly describe why and when it can be published.

12. Respect, trust and cooperation:

• As the amount of work and the complexity of the task that lies before us is unmanageable without cooperation, we will form alliances wherever possible and strive to foster a culture of mutual interaction..
• Our cooperation is based on mutual tolerance, trust and respect. We support each other.
• We are willing to bargain, especially if a compromise stems from intensive discussion and does not render the outcome unproductive. We do not obstruct agreements just because we insist that we are in the right.
• We are capable of humility and playing down our ego for the common good.
• We respect the results of democratic processes, but may defend our opinion.

13. Empathy:

• It is important to be aware of ourselves and everyone around us. Understanding and empathy are the cornerstone of high-calibre interpersonal relationships.
• We always bear in mind that everyone is unique, has their own needs and yearnings, and that their circumstances vary. A community pursuing shared goals and values can only be nurtured with sensitivity and respect for the fact that everyone is different.

14. Contentment:

• We will not allow dejection to get the better of us. Being happy, humorous and mellow prevents us from taking ourselves too seriously and helps us to cope when we become frustrated with the difficult struggles facing us.
• Humour and mellowness shields us from becoming too embittered and angry with each other and our opponents.

15. Drive and stamina:

• We do our utmost to clean up the public arena, but always spell out clearly our limits.
• We will remain doggedly diligent and press home all our goals by uniting in our resolve and encouraging each other. We support each other in our work. Our determination remains strong. If anyone’s resolve flags, the others must sense this and provide a helping hand.