Maravi

Rupiah and ‘doom speakers’ on corruption

Rupiah and ‘doom speakers’ on corruption
By The Post
Fri 08 July 2011, 15:20 CAT

It is shocking that Rupiah Banda can publicly declare that there is no corruption in Zambia. Rupiah says “let’s not listen to doom speakers who say that there is corruption in the country”.

Corruption has prevailed in all forms of government. Corruption in several forms prevails all over the world. Various forms of corruption include extortion, graft, bribery, cronyism, nepotism, embezzlement and patronage. Corruption allows criminal activities such as money laundering, extortion and so on and so forth to thrive.

It’s difficult for us to understand how Rupiah can publicly declare that there is no corruption in the country. How is this possible? Our own explanation is that Rupiah doesn’t want to hear the word “corruption” because it is an attack on him.

However, this actually shouldn’t shock us because this is not the first time Rupiah has failed to acknowledge corruption where it exists, where it has taken place and the responsibility of those involved in it. Rupiah has failed to see or recognise corruption when he meets it.

To Rupiah, corruption is not corruption if those involved in it are himself or those close or friendly to him. Where he or his friends are involved, Rupiah doesn’t seem to know what constitutes corruption. And let us not forget that Rupiah is the man who removed the abuse of office offence from our Anti Corruption Commission Act.

Rupiah has embraced corruption and corrupt elements and he has tried everything possible to free his friends from corruption charges and suits. This was the case with the late Frederick Chiluba. And this is what, for political expedience, they seem to be promising Katele Kalumba today if he co-operates politically.

We don’t think Rupiah doesn’t really understand what constitutes corruption. He does. But he is blinded by corruption and because of this, he fails to see it. We don’t think Rupiah doesn’t understand that the word ‘corruption’ means the destruction, ruining or the spoiling of the society or a nation.

We also don’t think that Rupiah doesn’t understand the fact that a corrupt society stops valuing integrity, virtue or moral principles.

He understands all these things very well but corruption itself stops him from acknowledging them. Corruption changes things for the worst. A corrupt society begins to decay and sets itself on the road to self-destruction.

Corruption is an age-old phenomenon. Selfishness and greed are the two main causes of corruption. Selfish people and greedy people have difficulties acknowledging that they are selfish and greedy. They don’t see selfishness as selfishness, greed as greed. They see them as something else. Sometimes one can say they live in a world of denial.

It is well known that political corruption is the abuse of power by state officials for their unlawful private gain. And this is what Rupiah has done or is trying to achieve with the removal of the abuse of office offence from our statute books.

But corruption has serious consequences. It is like a cancer that spreads very quickly if it’s not detected early and contained. It destroys all institutions and structures of society. Over 1,500 years ago, the mighty Roman Empire disintegrated when its rulers became corrupt and selfish.

Nations having a tyrannical powerful ruling group that refuses to punish the corrupt within it, face the menace of corruption. A corrupt society is characterised by immorality and lack of fear and respect for the law.

Corruption cannot be divorced from economics. In societies where traditional religious ethical teaching and standards of morality are weak, corruption often thrives. These values need to be revived. And in this effort, our religious leaders and chiefs have an important role to play.

We know that for some people like Rupiah, being corrupt, abusing their public offices is a way to get what they desire. In societies which ignore corruption, corruption becomes a way of life. But there are consequences. The consequences of corruption for social and economic development are bad. Corruption hinders economic growth and deters meaningful investment.

Where there is corruption, natural resources are misused. Careless exploitation of natural resources – from timber and minerals to wildlife – is the order of the day. Corruption has also led to the ravaging of natural environments. Environmentally devastating projects are given preference in funding because they are easy targets for siphoning off public money in to private pockets.

Clearly, the cost of corruption is four-fold: political, economic, social and environmental. On the political front, corruption constitutes a major obstacle to democracy and the rule of law. Where there is corruption, as we are starting to see in our country today, offices and institutions of the state lose their legitimacy when they are misused for private advantage.

This is what is happening today to our institutions that deal with our judicial process. They are quickly losing their legitimacy because of corruption. Public confidence in them is waning very fast because of corruption.

Accountable political leadership cannot develop in a corrupt climate. Economically, corruption leads to the depletion of natural wealth. It is often responsible for the funneling of our scarce public resources to uneconomic high-profile projects at the expense of less-spectacular but more necessary projects. Furthermore, corruption hinders the development of fair market structures and distorts competition, thereby deterring investment.

Today, to get a government contract, you have to be in good terms or on the side of those in power and in a position to give something back to them for their pockets and their election campaigns. Today people join the ruling party simply to get government business – it pays to belong to the ruling party.

The effect of corruption on the social fabric of society is the most damaging of all. It undermines people’s trust in the political system, in its institutions and its leadership.

Frustration and general apathy among a disillusioned public result in a weak society. That in turn clears the way for despots as well as democratically elected, yet unscrupulous, leaders to turn national assets into personal wealth. We saw this with Chiluba and his corrupt regime. And we are today seeing this with Rupiah and his corrupt regime.

Demanding and paying bribes becomes the norm. Those unwilling to comply are excluded from participation in the economic and political affairs of their country, depriving the country of the contribution of its most able and most honest citizens.

Where there is corruption, resources are diverted from sectors such as education and health to less important sectors or personal enrichment. A few people manage to get rich at the expense of society as a whole, while the poor suffer terribly. In the long run, unchecked corruption pushes more and more people into poverty which often destabilises a society.

Rupiah knows that there is corruption in his government. But why is he denying its existence? Rupiah is a beneficiary of the corruption that is going on in our country today. If corruption is successfully fought in our country, Rupiah’s hold on power will end very quickly. It is corruption that is keeping him in power. Without corruption, Rupiah’s hold on power will cease.

Look at how corruptly his regime is abusing the state-owned and government-controlled media to keep themselves in power in total disregard of the legal rights of other political players and citizens!

Look at the way they are corruptly abusing the judicial process to protect the corruption and abuses of their league! There is an old axiom often applied to those with political ambitions: power corrupts; absolute power corrupts absolutely.

In this case, the term corruption means the abuse of a public office for personal gain or other illegal or immoral benefit. Political corruption is a recognised criminal offence, along with bribery, extortion and embezzlement – the illegal acts associated with corruption in office.

Some forms of corruption may escape legal notice, such as hiring of relatives for key positions, but they may not escape the scrutiny of voters on election day. Whenever a person accepts a political appointment or wins election to an office, he must take an oath to uphold the public trust. While this may sound noble on paper, enforcement of this oath can prove problematic.

Very few political candidates successfully reach office without making a few promises along the way. Many of these campaign promises are harmless. But there are others which come closer to crossing an ethical line, such as hiring relatives or awarding government contracts to relatives, friends and other influential contributors.

Rupiah needs to understand that when we talk about corruption, we also mean the misuse of entrusted power for private gain. And those who are speaking about his misuse of entrusted power are not “doom speakers” but responsible citizens trying to create a more prosperous, just, fair and humane society.

And people can fight corruption by speaking out and letting the state know that they have had enough of it. They are not doom speakers. It is Rupiah who is a doom leader.

Labels: CORRUPTION, RUPIAH BANDA

posted by MrK @ 7:19 PM