Corruption has become endemic to our society. This means that there are no longer small pockets of corruption. It is pervasive. Eskom. PPE. Money not reaching the poor. An estimated R61.5 billion of irregular government spending during 2019. Bankrupt municipalities. Skimming off the top. Blatant and shameless nepotism. Ineffectual measures to stem the tide. Unempowered and unenabled judicial and law enforcement efforts. Lots of talk about fighting corruption but seemingly to little effect.
The nett effects are a dark societal psyche, anger, frustration, despondency, and uncertainty about the future – not only our futures but also the futures of generations to come. Society has lost confidence in its leadership. So much so, that previously trusted leaders are being ridiculed in all forms of media. In short: people are gatvol. The frustration, of course, also stems from a sense of ‘we cannot do much about this’. Such a psyche, with its own particular and pervasive narrative, is clearly dangerous for societal harmony and sustainability.
How can the tide be turned? As a small step forward, we will identify several traditional and popular ways of fighting corruption and evaluate their effectiveness. We will then explore a few ideas on what could be done to affect the tide.
1.Traditional efforts to fight corruption
Commissions of inquiry are appointed to investigate large-scale corruption. Organisations and alliances are formed resulting in treaties. Pacts are signed between various role players. Guidelines are set by ‘acronym’ and other entities such as the UNGC, OECD, TI, and the World Bank internationally, and locally OUTA and Corruption Watch.
Various international legislative requirements also exist to combat corruption and economic crime: the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, United Kingdom Anti-bribery Act, Sarbanes-Oxley Act, the Federal Sentencing Guidelines. The African Union Convention on Preventing and Combating Corruption guidelines provides some direction in Africa, and on the local front, we have the Public Finance Management Act, Municipal Finance Management Act, and the Prevention and Combating of Corrupt Activities Act.
Why traditional efforts are not effectual
In the ‘fight’ against corruption many of these initiatives are relatively successful in developed countries, yet seemingly ineffectual in many other parts of the world.
When a group of leaders share collective narcissism, they reject or attack groups that somehow threaten their group’s grandiose image. They reject criticism and acquire conspiratorial thinking, such as a shared perception of corruption as a victimless crime, a distorted sense of entitlement and a lack of empathy.Leaders have power. So do groups of collective narcissists. The loyalty that they demand may not be questioned by their followers. Criticising, or even merely talking about corruption becomes akin to being disloyal. Corruption is then silently accepted by followers, irrespective of their sense of fairness and justice. Loyalty thus trumps justice.
Lastly, when you fight corruption, it fights back. Laws that allow forms of secrecy are promulgated. Hindrances are put in the way of those appointed to monitor and audit corruption, for example, investigators, prosecutors, internal auditors. Even the Auditor-General is handicapped, and control over the Public Prosecutor ensures an easy ride into the sunset of corruption. Whistleblowers are victimised and persecuted for being disloyal or jealous of those that have been ‘lucky’ to enrich themselves. And, of course, whistleblowers often pay with their lives.
What could work?
- Collective action to build healthy ethical cultures: agreement among different stakeholders to implement a joint programme with clear goals and timelines with the aim of reducing corruption.
- Transparent communication: the money trails for funds designated for specific application or distribution should be communicated openly and transparently in the routes where money flows. Mohamed El Dahshan (2020) of Harvard University writes that fighting corruption is best done when people work together from the bottom up. During the 1990s Uganda, when it suffered from a problem of corruption so severe that, for every 100 dollars the government would disburse to schools across the country, only 20 would reach the destination; 80 dollars would somehow disappear, siphoned along the way. So, the Ministry of Finance decided to try a novel approach: it informed the local media and placed posters in schools detailing the sums to be released. This time, 90% of the money reached its destination.
- Legitimate agents: When money is disbursed it should be done under conditions of strict monitoring, auditing, and reporting – this should apply to all public spending and donor funding.
- Education: the public should be continuously educated about what corruption is in simple terms, and why it is wrong. When a member of a community suddenly acquires an expensive vehicle, this should be questioned in terms of whether his/her income justifies such a purchase. Communities should be educated to understand that expensive acquisitions are not necessarily symbolic of success in work or business, but that it could have been obtained by illegal means or activities of corruption. Citizens are thus empowered to question things.
- Naming and shaming: Those that commit corruption steal from the people. Continuous public exposure of such individuals and groups should become standard practice. The invasion of privacy excuse used to mitigate such drastic action loses its validity when people steal from society. Lifestyle audits can be mentioned in the same breath – taxpayers have a right to know how responsibly, or not, their money is spent.
- Visible sanctions: Albeit that there are other, more constructive, ways of inculcating an ethical culture in society, transparent, consistent, decisive, and swift punishment of transgressors remains an effective way of preventing corruption.
- Rewarding of whistleblowers: Practical ways of rewarding those that expose wrongdoing should be conceptualised and implemented.
- Media contribution: The media could play an important role in shifting the focal points of respect from revering those who ‘have’ to commend those who are honest. The media can also contribute by creating a culture where critical thinkers are not labelled as coconuts or racists.
