by accident or design(whether) by accident or design
whether intended to be this way or not.
The system, whether by accident or design, benefits people who live in the cities more than people who live in the country.
(whether) by accident or design
Intentionally or not. Whether by accident or design, those high school kids have really created a solid, sustainable business.
(whether) by ˌaccident or deˈsign
if you say that something happens by accident or design, you mean that you do not know if it has been planned or not: Mary was wearing the same T-shirt as me — whether by accident or design, I never knew.