Interrogating the Centrality of Public Interest in the Exercise of Administrative Discretion

No modern government can function without the exercise of some form of discretion by its officials. This is premised on the fact that it is humanly impossible to lay down a rule for every conceivable event in the complex art of modern government. It therefore becomes imperative to grant administrative discretion to government officials to address areas not covered or anticipated by extant rules or laws. Consequently, in this paper, the central question is not whether public officials should exercise administrative discretion in carrying out duties expected of them; rather, the key question is how and for what purposes discretion should be used. This will obviate abuses while at the same time serving the public interest. This paper posits that while the consideration of public interest is the central take in the exercise of administrative discretion, it must not be to the complete negation of secondary interests. Rather, administrators should pursue the public interest which is the primary interest, while sacrificing to the least extent possible the secondary interests connected with it.