Ethics
Fraud, Waste or Abuse (FWA) is a reoccurring problem not only in the Department of Defense (DoD) but in the United States Army as well. FWA can drain significant resources and ultimately rob American taxpayers of much needed resources (Inspector General Guide to Fraud, Waste, or Abuse Awareness, 2012). The purpose of this paper is to discuss Fraud, Waste or Abuse (FWA) paying particular attention to the misuse of government-owned vehicles (GOV). Overall, the Department of Defense and the Inspector General conducted research through the span of 12 months uncovering $193 million in wastage. Investigations into the wastage led to 140 convictions, 87 suspensions, and 99 debarments (Inspector General Guide to Fraud, Waste, or Abuse Awareness, 2012). This proved that fraud, waste, and abuse is a reoccurring issue in the Department of Defense and the United States Military. People in these organizations have the misconception that the trucks are there for their personal use.
However, misuse of the government trucks and vans are on the rise and more needs to be done to reverse the trend . Government vehicles or non-tactical vehicles’ (NTV) are available for use to support the current operations of a unit, under an official use policy and not intended for personal gains and the use of these vehicles for personal activities reflect lack of professional ethics.
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Fraud, Waste, and Abuse
The early warning signs of fraud are, usually the signs a considerable number of people pay no attention to. There are the normal warning signs for every type of fraud in the everyday society. To extensively understand the warning signs of fraud, it is prudent to first define what it is. Fraud is defined by Webster’s dictionary as an intentional perversion of truth in order to induce another to part with something of value or to surrender a legal right. Waste is defined as intentional or unintentional, thoughtless or careless expenditure, consumption, mismanagement, use or squandering of resources to the detriment of an organization (10.02.01 Fraud, Waste, and Abuse, 2016). Waste also includes in excessive or improper use of a resource. Intentional destruction, diversion, manipulation, misapplication or misuse of resources is known as Abuse (10.02.01 Fraud, Waste, and Abuse, 2016).
Battling fraud, waste, and abuse is not only a wartime endeavor. During peacetime or Garrison environments when the normal rules of procurement and oversight are overlooked there is an increased use of GOVs. During this period people either forget to follow the rules or deliberately decide break the rules. A few signs that are always exhibited is attitude. Some of the government employees develop an attitude of ownership towards the government. The feeling of power encourages abuse. Under AR 58-1, vehicles will not be provided when the justification is based solely on reasons of rank, position, prestige, or personal convenience. Not only is the unprofessional use of government vehicles ethically wrong but also in direct violation of AR 58-1.
How can the organization control or at least combat the miss use of government vehicles? As the Command Sergeant Major, you are Senior Enlisted Advisor to the commander; you are his or her right hand, the additional set of eyes on the battlefield. The Army prides itself on being a “ value-based ” institution with the admonition in its doctrine to “do what’s right.” In the Army’s leadership manual, it states, “your character helps you know what is right; more than that, it links that knowledge to action. The Army’s leadership manual describes the process of how to “link knowledge to action” in a description of an Ethical Decision Making Model, or EDMM.
This rather simplistic model includes the following four steps: Step 1 define the problem, Step 2 know the relevant rules, Step 3 Develop and evaluate courses of action and Step 4 Choose the course of action that best represents Army values. The end state is to prevent waste of resources and abuse of privileges. Although each of us has preferred lens, some who are ethically mature and able to use the tools of all the lenses, adapting them as appropriate in a given situation. We will look deeper in how this FWA presents an ethical dilemma when viewed through two of the three ethical lenses . Sergeants Majors can use these lenses to look at problems through different “ethical lenses,” to develop the ability to make reasonable decisions that reflect on professional ethic.
Root Issue
It is the responsibility of the department of defense to protect and safeguard all its resources. Above all, it should make use of the resources in a proper manner to prevent damage, loss or wastage. This is done by maintaining and establishing internal sound control in the hope to detect and discourage possible misuse of resources through following various actions which reduce financial loss in the case of misuse and also through correcting abuse (10.02.01 Fraud, Waste, and Abuse, 2016). The main issue is that all the resources in the department emanate from the public tax deduction. Thus misusing the resources translates to misusing the hard earned public funds which are mostly done for personal benefit. It is important to note that all citizens share a unified purpose of providing service to the public and as a result must ensure that public funds are spent in a wise manner.
Therefore, all the work in government institution including the department of defense should be conducted to ensure fairness, equity, proper ethical procedures and meeting proper objectives in terms of managing the institutions resources to ensure that there is no fraud, wastage or abuse of resources involved. Following these concerns, it serves to the interest of citizens who are the main stakeholder for all public resources to be provided with a mechanism and chance to express their concerns when they realize that there is misappropriation or they feel or detect that something is not right.
Ethical Lens of Rules
The first lens that a Sergeant Major can use is the lens of Rules. First, it must be understood what ethics means. Ethics is a system of moral principles, as of an individual. Army ethics is critical for the Army Profession. It provides “the moral basis for why our Army exists” (Army 2015) . Rules cover Army Regulations, laws and orders. Why is this so important? It is simply our morals, values, and character which guide us to do the right thing even when no one is looking. It is making the hard right over the easy left. Yet this is so hard to do when it comes to making decisions when to use GOV. In accordance with Army Regulation 58-1, that transportation provided for military and civilian personnel officially participating in public ceremonies, military field demonstrations, and parades directly related to official activities. The regulation clearly states what we can and cannot do, yet we still find GOVs parked by gates, in the PX parking, and at the commissary. Every organization that owns one of these vehicles will have a policy letter or Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) that will follow the vehicle. With rules and regulations, an outcome will occur wheatear it is good or bad. Outcomes bring us to our second lens.
Ethical Lens of Outcomes
The second Ethical Lens that a Sergeant Major can is the Lens of Outcomes this lens deals with the second and third order of effects. Outcomes-based reasoning: What are the benefits and costs of the outcomes of my different choices? This is a question that the Sergeant Major can ask if he is using the Ethical Lens of Outcome. According to Barry ( 1985), misuse or negligence of a government-owned vehicle can lead to no less than a one-month suspension without pay. This is an example of the type of punishment for a government employee or civilian contractor. The Army may proceed to pursue punishment under the Uniform Code of Military Justice. With a 30-day suspension, the second and third order of effects weighs heavily on others within the unit of the suspended individual. Individuals of the suspended individuals must now come together to perfume duties of the suspended individual. Asoldier who works extra shifts to cover for the workload is left with less time to relax and recover from the daily tiring activities. In the long run this individual will wear out and feel demotivated. This can be a burden if the work habits of any soldier start to diminish due to the lack of rest. With a lack of rest, senses will not be as sharp as they would be when fully rested. The worst-case scenario one can encounter is when one has been working long hours then get an opportunity to drive a government issued vehicle which end up in an accident due to fatigue.
Recommendation
Following many cases of FWA, the department of defense has the inspector general whose mission is to ensure relevant, independent and apt oversight of DoD which promotes integrity, efficiency, and accountability. The DoD Inspector general acts as a hotline that is an instrument to help the government and its citizens prevent misappropriation of properties and thus saving the public money (Army, 2015). He or she remains to be a confidential channel to report any kind of fraud, waste, and abuse that may be noted involving DOD officers. For confidentiality purpose, the person reporting can identify themselves or make their identity anonymous. Thus this is a reliable and confidential way to report any case of FWA, misappropriation.
In any case, it becomes the responsibility of the DoD staff members to become ethically responsible and follow the set policies of usage for the provided resources. In doing so, the many instances of FWA will decrease at a considerable rate, and generally, the government will save a lot of taxpayers’ money which can be channeled to other useful places.
In other cases, the DoD should come up with ways to use the cost-effective internal control to fulfill the DoD obligation for the accountable utilization of the resources in complying with the federal law. This will ensure that all provided resources are used appropriately and above all in accomplishing the set missions and operations
Conclusion
Following the Ethical Decision Making Model, the Sergeant Major will now be well equipped to make the ethical decisions that he or she may be facing. In the end, your values, morals, and character will guide you in making those decisions. Those government vehicles or non-tactical vehicles’ (NTV) that are available for use to support the current operations of the unit, under an official use policy and not intended for personal gains. Professionals must work with operations managers to integrate legal and regulatory requirements into everyday operations that include the use of those vehicles. We must create and sustain an environment that is conducive to compliance with ethical and professional behavior when dealing with government vehicles.
References
10.02.01 Fraud, Waste, and Abuse . (2016) (pp. 1-4).
Army, U. S. (2015). Army doctrine reference publication no. 1: The army profession. Washington, DC: Headquarters, Department of the Army Inspector General Guide to
Barry, D. (1985). MANAGEMENT, ACQUISITION, AND USE OF MOTOR VEHICLES (No. DOD-D-4500.36).
Fraud, Waste, or Abuse Awareness . (2012) (pp. 1-27). Washington, DC 20330-1140.
System Regulation10.02.01, Fraud, Waste, and Abuse
