Political fortitude is a necessary condition for public managers to use the budget as a management tool. Such fortitude means that elected officials lose their tolerance of leakage as the funds appropriated in the national budget are transferred to line departments and local governments to fund programs. Whether the leakage is outright theft of public funds or gross
mismanagement, a transparent budget execution system can identify the leakage source and allow the appropriate staff to be held accountable. Whether the process is transparent and whether staff members are held accountable is a political decision.As countries increasingly focus attention on ending corruption, the decision for elected officials is whether to fight the reforms or to promote them. A transparent budget execution system that provides access for citizens to monitor government expenditures is viewed as instrumental to reducing corruption and mismanagement in many nations.