Human mind is both; a shrine of nobility and a workshop of the devil. Both capacities and capabilities remain at loggerheads, perennially. This constant feud between the two states of mind rarely results in a draw --- there is always a winner and a loser. There are times when evil takes over nobility and also occasionally , the winning side of the dice falls in the arena of nobility. For each noble and ignoble act(s), the human mind in its fertility of thought, conjures an excellent excuse for either of the two situations.
Human mind is both; a shrine of nobility and a workshop of the devil. Both capacities and capabilities remain at loggerheads, perennially. This constant feud between the two states of mind rarely results in a draw --- there is always a winner and a loser. There are times when evil takes over nobility and also occasionally , the winning side of the dice falls in the arena of nobility. For each noble and ignoble act(s), the human mind in its fertility of thought, conjures an excellent excuse for either of the two situations.
Every inhuman act is supported by self seeking justification. If killing one human is considered by most religions and societies as the killing of the entire humanity, then how does the killing of over 45,000 innocent men, women and children of Gaza stand in the dock of justice? To the perpetrators of this heinous crime, it is justified ethnic cleansing; to the victims, it is crude, blatant and bloody genocide. Both are convinced of their respective positions as being “just”.
The apparent victory of evil over good is perceived by the large majority as an act of indiscriminate human injustice, yet to the evil minds it doesn’t matter. Even the rulings by the International Court of Justice and the resolutions by the impotent United Nations have no effect upon the devilish minds. The evil acts seem alluring to those who have unleashed this terror, they believe (falsely) that they are doing the right thing. This immemorial battle rages with full fury today , because of corrupt minds; while a great majority of people still hope that truth and goodness would prevail. Corruption in actions will be laid to rest , to burn, eternally, in the inferno of self inflicted wounds. They live with this hope.
The abuse of power is corruption. This abuse is done by a single individual or could be by a group of individuals. The gain of any at the cost of others is the simplest way to define and understand corruption.
The IMF has cited numerous key indicators that cause and promote corruption. These, as per IMF, include government intervention in the economy, the liberalisation of policies and the deregulation of some specific industries.
In the world of business and corporate entities, the predominance of financial corruption is starkly naked. All means deployed to achieve the end stand justified, as the necessary need, to make progress. Corruption is conveniently latched upon the prevalent rotten system, which is considered not correctable and hence submission to corrupt practices is not viewed as unholy.
A colleague narrated in humour, that he broke the traffic signal and was promptly stopped by the traffic warden ... to the cop, he admitted his guilt and said, please go ahead and give me the ticket … the warden was perplexed and remarked, I don’t have the ticket book on me ... he then went on to impress my colleague of how difficult it will be for him to submit the challan ... the cop was baiting to be bribed ... but this colleague was an equal match for the poor constable “let’s go to the nearest police station" he told the cop; “so that you can issue me the ticket" Lo! the warden melted away realising that nothing “profitable" would emerge out of this engagement. The warden said, “I will let you off this time, but before you go, please come with me and confirm to my three other colleagues that you gave me no dime”!! Not offering a bribe is against the system; and that’s corruption.
With most governments and corporations, corruption begins with the corruption of principles. In the business environment, it is always the cardinal article, that it must be done at any cost. All costs, including bending the rules, turning a blind eye; issuing and revoking at will self serving, SRO’s, policies, and repealing of hurtful practices and procedures. By giving rewards that are undeserving is corruption too. The corruption of one thing is the generation of the other.
Corruption is a blinder. The society audits charity organisations and corruptively accepts unbelievable administrative expenses. There is no remorse or regret. Elaborate meals and lavish cuisine that is laid out for the board meetings isn’t considered unholy. All expenses are justified. Even the old age homes and orphanages aren’t spared by this type of validation. The concept of conflict of interest is totally foreign to our government functionaries and equally so is to the private sector. Family ties and relationships based on narrow minded thinking of creed, class and beliefs is supreme than good governance; at the altar of fairness, competence, is severely crucified.
The evil mind says, home is home, when it finds itself in the court of self accountability. Corruption is like a ball of snow, as it descends through the layers of the society or through the ladders of hierarchy, it only becomes bigger and bigger. Timidity and weakness in resolve is also a manifestation of corruption; many people suffer from this ailment. In such a societal setup, it is the small time thieves who are hanged, the great ones escape, and invariably with honours.
Conflict of interest is a concept that is foreign to most in our blessed land. Authority and responsibility are smudged concepts. They are made to overlap to such an extent that the fine distinction between the two submerges to create the acceptance of corruption, as a way of life. Hence it is rightly said: Neither bribe nor lose thy right. For centuries now, we remain hopeful that corruption will die its death. Even William Shakespeare, hoped in 'Henry VIII', "Corruption wins not more than honesty".
The elite culture promotes intellectual corruption with confidence of being a valid thing, the opinion of others is thrown into the waste paper basket with disdainful arrogance. The perpetuation of one's own opinion as being superior to all others reeks of corruption of ignorance.
Nepotism in my view is the worst form of corruption, for it has the lethal potential to last for a very long time. The hereditary politics of the South Asian subcontinent is a case in point. Familial relationships remain in dominance over competence. I had just stepped into my teen years, when I heard my hero, Z.A.Bhutto, in his first address to the nation upon assumption of the office of the first ever civilian chief martial law administrator and president; during the course of his speech, which was so uplifting for the nation that was living in despondency, following the loss of East Pakistan, introduced his paternal cousin to his compatriots as a “talented cousin'. BB was a class politician in her own right. She could stand without the crutches of a surname. She had earned her position and stature; wasn’t a case study of political nepotism/corruption. But not all inheritors exhibit the same excellence or even near about; undeservedly they are presented with an office … and that is the crowning of corruption --- constitutionally legalised .
Transparency International each year publishes its measure and analysis of corruption index; that identifies the most and the least corrupt countries. Based on their assessments, analysts argue that the most probable reasons for corruption to exist are housed in personal greed, lack of sensitivity to ethical and moral standards, a culture that doesn’t admonish corruption, rather expresses admiration of the corrupt by not taking action; lack of institutional transparency, inefficient controls, etc.
Evil communication corrupts good manners; the unrighteous penny corrupts the pound; one drop of poison infects the whole tun of wine; he that deals in corruption will have his hands bemired. Corruption defiles the personality. These are facts known to all, yet, there is no abandoning of corrupt practices in the society. Corruption reeks through all segments; from education to health; from politics to bureaucracy; from sports to culture; from taxation to theft of utilities and from media to commerce & industries.
Just as evil is justified, corruption in all its formats and manifestations is also justified. In seeking justification of ignoble deeds, all distinctions get distorted by all segments of society; ranging from priests, mullahs and sadhus to politicians of all hues and shades; from teachers to students; from illiterate to the learned and from the entrepreneurs to employees. Each of them twist facts to suit the undoable. All undignified acts are considered or are made to be seen as Kosher. The new terminology in vogue is “narrative” --- this is the new name of corruption of information; truth lies buried under the stinking corpse of falsehood.
To rid ourselves of corruption, we just need honesty and accountability at the top most echelon; get the person perched at the apex of the entity that is found indulgent towards corrupt practices and the rest of the pyramid of the management structure will correct itself. The punishment for corruption and related practices must not give prominence or spotlight to the corrupt. Nobody should be permitted to bask in the glory of having their name mentioned in “leaks” of all sorts. I recently got an invoice from an organisation that is perceived as corrupt, which had on its face a preprinted inscription that read, “Say, no to corruption". EUREKA!
The writer is a senior banker and a freelance columnist
