I was recently re-reading Cicero’s De Officiis (On Moral Responsibility) and in a pleasant surprise, found that Cicero had embraced an important Caux Round Table Principle for Government.
The principles rest on a premise of responsibility, using the concept of office as a trust.
I was reading Walter Miller’s translation from the Latin and was quite surprised to see, for the first time, that Cicero had advocated the same moral vision for those in government as does the Caux Round Table.
Cicero wrote:
For the administration of the government, like the office of a trustee, must be conducted for the benefit of those entrusted to one’s care, not of those to whom it is entrusted. Now, those who care for the interests of a part of the citizens and neglect another part, introduce into the civil service a dangerous element – dissension and party strife. (Book I, XXV, 85)
The Caux Round Table Principles for Government start with this standard of conduct:
Fundamental principle: Public power is held in trust for the community.
Power brings responsibility. Power is a necessary moral circumstance in that it binds the actions of one to the welfare of others.
Therefore, the power given by public office is held in trust for the benefit of the community and its citizens. Officials are custodians only of the powers they hold. They have no personal entitlement to office or the prerogatives thereof.
Holders of public office are accountable for their conduct while in office. They are subject to removal for malfeasance, misfeasance or abuse of office. The burden of proof that no malfeasance, misfeasance or abuse of office has occurred lies with the officeholder.
The state is the servant and agent of higher ends. It is subordinate to society. Public power is to be exercised within a framework of moral responsibility for the welfare of others. Governments that abuse their trust shall lose their authority and may be removed from office.
It is reassuring to discover that our approach has an excellent precedent.
How many problems do we face in country after country caused by governments that do not live up to their responsibilities of serving the common good as faithful stewards of life-giving moral capitals?