Cancerous menace of corruption: Part I

Preamble

The inscription carved on the base of the Statue of Dr. K. Nkrumah outside the Law Courts in Accra, Ghana: “Seek ye first the kingdom of politics and all else shall be added unto you!”Citation from the Mahawamsa – ‘The Great Chronicle’ written in Pali recording the history and heritage of Sri Lanka from 543 BC: “…The ruler’s trusteeship of the resources of the State which belong to the people is a part of the legal heritage of Sri Lanka dating back at least to the third century BC as pointed out by Justice Weeramantry in his separate opinion in the International Court of Justice in the Danube Case, by quoting the sermon of Arahath Mahinda to King Devanampiya Tissa as recorded in the Great Chronicle”

Article 28(d) of the Constitution: “28. The exercise and enjoyment of rights and freedoms is inseparable from the performance of duties and obligations, and accordingly it is the duty of every person in Sri Lanka – (d) to preserve and protect public property, and to combat misuse and waste of public property;”‘Cicero and the fall of the Roman Republic,’ by J.L. Strachan-Davidson, M.A., Fellow of Balliol College, Oxford, has recorded the following prognosis on Society, in an Address made by Cicero, as far back as 80 B.C.:

“Men of wisdom, men endowed with the place and the power which you occupy, are bound to apply the appropriate remedies to the disease of which the State is sickening. There is no one of you but knows well, that the Roman people, which formerly had the reputation of being most placable towards its enemies, labours to-day under the curse of cruelty to its own children.”

Sri Lanka’s apathy at the 4th Conference of State parties on the UN Convention Against Corruption held in Morocco, October 2011

“Remove this cruelty from the State, gentlemen of the jury; suffer it no longer to work its pleasure in this Commonwealth. It is a vice which is mischievous, not only in that it has swept off so many of our fellow-citizens under every circumstance of horror, but likewise because by the daily spectacle of painful sights it has made the tenderest hearts callous to the sense of pity. For when each hour we see or hear of some fresh atrocity, even though nature has made us mild of mood, familiarity with dreadful deeds plucks all feelings of humanity from our minds.”

“Was it for this that the nobility aroused itself and won back the State at the point of the sword? Was it in order that the menials and lackeys of the great should be able to harry the goods and the honour of us and you alike?”

Robert Klitgard in his book ‘Controlling Corruption,’ dealing with corruption through history had stated thus:

“After all, corruption is as old as government itself. Writing some 2300 years ago, the Brahman Prime Minister of Chandragupta listed ‘at least forty ways’ of embezzling money from the government. In ancient China, officials were given an extra allowance called Yang-lien, meaning, ‘nourish incorruptness’.

Apparently such nourishment often failed to achieve that purpose. Writing in the fourteenth century, Abdul Rahman Ibn Khaldun said that ‘the root cause of corruption’ was ‘the passion for luxurious living within the ruling group. It was to meet the expenditure on luxury that the ruling group resorted to corrupt dealing.’ Plato talked about bribery in The Laws: ‘The servants of the nation are to render their services without any taking of presents... To form your judgment and then abide by it, is no easy task, and’ ‘tis a man’s surest course to give loyal obedience to the law which commands, ‘Do not service for a present’. Like illness, corruption will always be with us. But as this sad fact does not keep us from attempting to reduce disease, neither should it paralyse efforts to reduce corruption. Corruption involves questions of degree. Countries and agencies have more and less corruption, and various kinds of illicit behaviour are more and less harmful. We can do better in controlling corruption.”

“The literature on corruption contains several useful definitions. A widely cited definition of “corruption” is: ‘behaviour which deviates from the formal duties of a public role because of private-regarding (personal, close family, private clique) pecuniary or status -gains; or violates rules against the exercise of certain types of private-regarding behaviour.’”

The World Bank Staff Working Paper No. 580, on the Effects of Corruption on Administrative Performance, David J Gould and Jose A Amaro-Reyes reported as follows:

“The government monopoly of economic activities in developing countries, when combined with conditions of political “softness” widespread poverty and socioeconomic inequalities, ambivalence towards the legitimacy of government and its organisations and systematic maladministration, provides fertile grounds for corruption, which ... has a deleterious, often devastating effect on administrative performance and economic and political development, for example corroding public confidence, perverting institutions’ processes and even goals, favouring the privileged and powerful few, and stimulating illegal capital export or use of nonrational criteria in public decisions.”

Addressing a Conference in February 1999 on “A Global Forum on Fighting Corruption”, the US Secretary of the Treasury, Robert Rubin made the following incisive assertions – (vide Wireless File – USIA):

“Corruption is very much a social and political issue. An accountable, responsive and honest government is central to a government’s legitimacy and, ultimately, to political and social stability… In order to succeed in the global economy, nations must be able to attract private capital to foster growth. There are many dimensions to an environment conducive to attracting private capital... Among these dimensions I would include here is good governance, in particular, effectively combating corruption... It (Corruption) discourages small business, entrepreneurs, and consumers who simply cannot afford the cost of bribery. It discourages foreign investment. And it damages the respect for law and public and financial institutions, undermines the credibility and effectiveness of both elected and appointed government officials, and creates an environment conducive to crime in the private sector, including organised crime...”

“Corruption exists everywhere. But corruption is especially troubling in developing countries... It seems to me there are at least five elements critical to effectively combating corruption; – First, nations must have good, clear laws and regulations that can be easily and reliably enforced. This, in turn, requires courts that are adequately funded and independent of political pressure, as well as honest, well trained and adequately compensated regulators, judges, prosecutors and law enforcement officers; ... – Second is to eliminate unnecessary controls on the economy and reduce state involvement in the economy. Reducing both the scope and the administrative discretion of government reduce the potential for corruption…”

“Third is to create a well supervised, soundly regulated, and competitive financial system that operates on a commercial basis and is not subject to decisions based on personal or political connections; – Fourth is to increase the transparency and accountability of government operations and decision-making. Shining light on the activities of government by publishing information about its operations and decision making and by including public participation in those decisions, is a powerful deterrent to corruption. Let me also add that a free and vibrant press can make an enormous contribution here; – Fifth and finally is to create a sound civil service system with strict conflict of interest rules, appropriate sanctions for malfeasance, and adequate compensation for employees...”

“Developed countries must deal directly with their own involvement in developing country corruption. Corruption is a too way street and for every bribe taker, there is a bribe giver. In 1977, the United States passed the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, which outlaws bribery by our businesses and investors in other countries… The OECD Bribery Convention, which was signed in December 1997, and went into effect just a few days ago, was a critical step in recognising the responsibility of industrial countries to discourage the giving of bribes. While most of the OECD have ended the tax deductibility of bribes, there are still several OECD countries that have not, and they should do so forthwith…”

UN Convention Against Corruption – Adoption

On the adoption of the United Nations Convention Against Corruption, then Secretary General, Kofi Annan stated thus:

“Corruption is an insidious plague that has a wide range of corrosive effects on societies. It undermines democracy and the rule of law, leads to violations of human rights, distorts markets, erodes the quality of life and allows organised crime, terrorism and other threats to human security to.

“This evil phenomenon is found in all countries — big and small, rich and poor — but it is in the developing world that its effects are most destructive. Corruption hurts the poor disproportionately by diverting funds intended for development, undermining a Government’s ability to provide basic services, feeding inequality and injustice and discouraging foreign aid and investment. Corruption is a key element in economic underperformance and a major obstacle to poverty alleviation and development.

Contd.on tomorrow

(The writer, F.C.A., F.C.M.A., C.M.A., C.G.M.A., C.F.E., is a Certified Fraud Examiner, Associate Member, American Bar Association, Member, International Consortium on Governmental Financial Management – ICGFM, Individual Member, International Association of Anti-Corruption Authorities – IAACA.)