Corruption is now finding its way on the national agenda

Jun 05, 2019 Letters

DEAR EDITOR,

The issue of corruption is now finding its way on the national agenda. The watchdog committee Transparency International and the Integrity Commission are both deserving of credit for highlighting breaches in accountability and transparency norms and calling out senior Government officials who fail to submit their statutory declarations on a timely manner.
This is good for the health of our body politic. The example has to be set from the top. This will have a cascading effect on those at the lower echelons of the public service.
I have always maintained the view that when it comes to corruption there can be no sacred cows. Every allegation of corruption must be thoroughly investigated and appropriate action taken to deal with those found guilty regardless of status or rank. It must not be perceived to be politically driven as is currently the case.
In this regard, the decision taken by the Integrity Commission to publish the names of those officials who failed to submit their declarations within the prescribed timeframe is a step in the right direction. It is not enough however, to publish names but to move to the next level by taking the appropriate legal action to ensure compliance.
Taking a tough stance against corruption will help to set the right moral tone for the society. Corruption is multifaceted and takes a variety of forms such as bribery, nepotism, cronyism, influence peddling, tax evasion, money laundering among others.
Regardless of what form it takes, we are all poorer for every act of corruption. The United Nations estimated that roughly 3.6 trillion dollars (US) or 5 percent of global GDP are lost annually due to corruption.
The cost of corruption is enormous and is a major impediment to national development and poverty reduction. This is why the fight against corruption must be inter-agency involving strong institutions such as the Office of the Auditor General, the Judiciary and other watchdog bodies such as Transparency International, the Integrity Commission and by no means least the wider citizenry.

Hydar Ally

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