New Code of Ethical-Professional Conduct for public servants

The Minister of the Interior Makis Voridis, the Governor of the National Transparency Authority Angelos Binis and the General Secretary of Human Resources Vivi Charalambogiannis presented on Tuesday, July 12, the Code of Ethical and Professional Conduct for Public Sector Employees as well as the National Integrity System.

The Code of Ethical and Professional Conduct, which was revised for the first time after 10 years, is the road map for managing and dealing with moral and ethical dilemmas faced by civil servants in their work.

In addition, it responds to a number of issues such as conflict of interest, harassment, intimidation, equal treatment, management and disclosure of information as well as any phenomena of abuse of power by senior officials of the Public Administration.

At the same time, the National Integrity System aims to implement actions related to the modernization and strengthening of the mechanisms of transparency, control, integrity and accountability of the Public Administration and is consistent with the National Strategic Plan to Combat Corruption, thus establishing an integrated, strong and coherent framework for the prevention and treatment of corruption phenomena, the strengthening of transparency, integrity and accountability and for the systematic information and awareness of society on corruption issues.

Mr. Voridis spoke of two useful administrative tools with particular added value, characterizing the Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct as a useful guide that outlines an ethical direction for civil servants, while the National Integrity System is a valuable step to enhance transparency and integrity in Public Administration and praised the cooperation of the Ministry of Interior with the National Transparency Authority in the implementation of this critical project.

Mr. Binis, for his part, presented the main components of the national integrity system. As he characteristically stated, “This is a system developed by the EAD in collaboration with the Ministry of Internal Affairs, so that there is a coherent set of specialized actions that can be implemented and measured with the aim of improving accountability, but also the mechanisms for ensuring integrity and fighting corruption in the set of public organizations. It is important for citizens to have an effective mechanism that will not only protect their interests and rights but will help further strengthen their trust in all government institutions and public organizations.”

Finally, Mrs. Charalambogianni thanked all those who cooperated in the implementation of the Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct of public servants characterizing it as a very important project.

Among other things, the Civil Servants Code provides that:

• Employees in the exercise of their responsibilities treat citizens with decency, courtesy, willingness to serve and respect.
• They behave with courtesy to their colleagues, not to express disparaging comments towards them and not to defame them in their leadership.
• They respect the personal or official opinions of their colleagues, while in case of disagreement, to seek a constructive exchange of opinions.
• They must refrain from any action to undermine the professional careers of their colleagues.
• Do not abdicate their responsibilities or transfer the responsibilities deriving from their job to other colleagues.
• They answer citizens’ questions about matters of their competence in a simple and comprehensible manner and with the greatest possible completeness and accuracy.
• They handle citizens’ cases within the deadline determined by the relevant provisions of the Code of Administrative Procedure (n. 2690/1999) or within a reasonable deadline.
• They deal with cases of awkward or argumentative citizens with calmness and understanding, avoiding tensions or arguments and, if necessary, ask for the assistance of competent authorities and institutions.
• Employees perform their duties without empathy and prejudice, defending and preserving the objective nature of their official judgment.
• At the same time, they avoid any discrimination and handle the cases assigned to them with neutrality and objectivity, without being influenced by unfair pressure policies.
• Employees, when working with colleagues, citizens or representatives of other agencies and/or businesses, must demonstrate behaviors that indicate their respect for the value of the human being as an individual and as a member of society and their dedication to the need to deepen equal treatment and avoiding bullying and harassment in the work environment.
• Justice, courtesy, non-discrimination and ecological awareness form the value framework through which respect for people and the environment is protected.
• Employees perform their duties transparently and honestly, without concealing facts or information.
• Employees respect the hierarchy and take responsibility for their decisions or actions in order to ensure the uninterrupted continuity of their organization’s work.
• Employees avoid situations of conflict of interest, as well as situations capable of creating the impression that such a conflict exists, while behaving in a way that is not dictated by personal or family interests.
• Employees perform their duties without empathy and prejudice, defending and preserving the objective nature of their official judgment.
• At the same time, they avoid any discrimination and handle the cases assigned to them with neutrality and objectivity, without being influenced by unfair pressure policies.
• Employees respect the value and ownership of the information they receive and do not share information without proper authorization.
• Employees ensure the acquisition of knowledge and skills in order to provide citizens with a high level of service.

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