A Study on relations between e-government, trust in government and corruption

Abstract

Today, many countries are experiencing a decline in trust in government. Should this be accepted as a kind of phenomenon called the “New Normal” accompanied with low rates of the growth and employment? Trust in government is regarded as the driving force in effective governance. If a government is not supported by trust from the people, it will be hard to expect people’s compliance to its policies. It would result in major disruptions in implementing its functions. In response, OECD countries have pursued transparent, accessible, and responsive “open government” and established “e-government” by utilizing ICT as a means to enhance the declining trust in government. The limits of representative democracy pointed out for a long time are being consistently supplemented by ICT. The internet provides a “public sphere” where anybody can participate, and people actively express their opinions on political and social issues. The government is also developing and providing various types of platforms where the people can express their opinions and the government can respond to them with greater insight. The era of “e-democracy” supplementing the limits of representative democracy has come to “e-government” in which the people are simply provided public services conveniently on the online. This study identifies the relationship between the establishment of e-government, trust in government and public integrity. The basic premise of this study is that a country where there is high trust in government would have a high level of integrity. This study proceeds with the focus of the relationship between e-government and integrity which is a key value of public interest. Today, the transnational issue of COVID-19 threatens human security. Fighting against this infectious disease of which the end is unknown is underway all over the world. Even the term “With Corona”, considering COVID-19 as a constant as something to coexist rather than to overcome, has been coined. Government of the Republic of Korea releases information related to the infectious disease, as well as the status and movement path of confirmed cases in real time based on its outstanding e-government infrastructure. Korea’s response to COVID-19 shows that well established e-government and release of related information are effective in managing national disasters. As such, public integrity including transparency is expected to serve as leverage to adapt, overcome, and leap beyond the challenge of the times such as the “New Normal” and “COVID-19”.