It should be our clear understanding that every loud proclamation that corruption—as we know it—is “dead” is followed by something new. Let’s agree that there is plenty of resourcefulness out there to redefine and reinvent corruption. Resourcefulness generates options—through creative and curious problem “creation”, especially in an environment of lacking accountability and supervision.
Here are some headlines in recent days which support the above statement:
■ SFO investigating Rio Tinto for suspected corruption: The UK Serious Fraud Office (SFO) is investigating the mining giant Rio Tinto for alleged corrupt business operations conducted by its employees and other associates in Guinea.
■ Corruption ring uncovered in project to upgrade Farrington station: Four men have been jailed for corruption in connection with a large contract to upgrade of London’s Farrington station.
■ Former Petrobras CEO arrested on corruption charges: Former Petrobras CEO, Aldemir
Bendine, was arrested for allegedly receiving large bribes from Odebrecht, the construction conglomerate embroiled in a long-running graft probe.
■ Spain’s Prime Minister to appear as witness in corruption case: Mariano Rajoy will appear as witness in a large graft trial embroiling his conservative party, marking the first time ever a sitting prime minister in Spain is called to court.
■ Ex-Mexican governor to stand trial: Ex-Mexican governor, Javier Duarte, accused of money laundering and organized crime among other charges has been ordered to stand trial.
■ German Car companies under investigation regarding cartel-like behavior (and that after Dirty Diesel). The obvious question is: Why does corruption survive?
Its survival depends upon four conditions:
The first condition necessary for the emergence and reemergence of corruption is that there be rents associated with a government’s regulatory powers.
The second condition requires that corrupt bureaucracies be somewhat independent within the remaining (if honest) administrative structure of the government. External controls of the bureaucracy—whether imposed by the remainder of the administrative system or by society at large—must be weak.
The third condition requires the public institutions controlling corruption be weak and ineffective. These institutions include civic groups that exert moral pressures, political parties and the media that could expose the wrongdoing, and the legal system that would have the authority to prosecute and punish the guilty (in the Philippines, the poor have to go to jail but the rich can easily get away or delay processes).
The fourth condition is a lack of whistle-blower protection. It is obvious that strange deals between government and the private sector and private sector to private sector (price fixing, collusion in biddings, bribing technical and purchasing staff, etc.) will only become known if people inside those companies become whistle-blowers. This is the reason the Integrity Initiative advocates the approval of bills that protect whistle-blowers in both Houses of Congress.
Measures of economic and social development seem to correlate very strongly with a reduction in corruption, involving the type of legal system, colonial legacies and religion. While it is clear that the level of corruption in societies with well-developed political institutions is lower, it is difficult to establish the direction of causation. Does development (economic, political or social) cause corruption to decline or is development possible only when corruption declines?
It’s time that companies and individuals sign the Integrity Pledge. Do it now and help creating the Integrity Nation we all want.
And remember, Integrity starts with I—meaning You.
Let me close by saying: You are the final authority. Not the government. Not the president. Not Mom or Dad. You. No community of philosophers, scientists, priests, academicians, politicians, or generals—no school, legislature, parliament, or court—can bear responsibility for your life, or your words, or your actions. This authority is yours and yours alone. You can neither get rid of it nor escape from it.
Henry Schumacher is one of the vice presidents of the Integrity Initiative Inc.
Flashback: On July 11 I wrote about ‘Open Government Partnership – Part of Fighting Corruption’ and made extensive reference to reports prepared by the Independent Reporting Mechanism (IRM) of the local Open Government Partnership implementation group. The reason why I used the IRM source is that the Integrity Initiative is part of the Civil Society Groups supporting the OGP Program and the reporting of the IRM. In fact, the Integrity Initiative has added progress information to the latest IRM report.
Image credits: Nuvolanevicata | Dreamstime.com