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“The other day, I took in $2,000. I kept $650 for my group, and gave the rest to Finance. Then I went to them with a request -- so many people need things, and they should not be going without basic comfort items -- and I was told to fill out paperwork. Paperwork! Are they the government now?” Smith fumed, even as he cajoled the passing crowd for more cash.

If paperwork is not kept in order, at some point someone will claim that money was misappropriated, usually with a strong implication that it went into someone's pocket.

This has happened repeatedly after natural disasters. If the government distributes aid rapidly and efficiently, IOW without a lot of paperwork to establish qualification, by definition some (or many) of those who get it won't be qualified. Criticism ensues.

If careful procedures are followed to make sure all rules are implemented, distribution is by definition slow and inefficient at getting to those who need it NOW. Criticism ensues.

But the critics never seem to recognize there is a direct tradeoff between procedural exactness and efficiency.

Same thing applies in business and life, BTW. If you follow all the rules and document them meticulously, the odds are you won't get much of anything else done.