You cannot expect corrupt and characterless individuals to work for eradication of corruption. A characterless or corrupt leader cannot and will not promote people of character and conviction and most likely they promote weak and characterless people and assign them important responsibilities.
Let us consider some common examples here. In India, we are very familiar with corruption in the Road Transport Authority (RTA) offices, in the Police Department and probably in all government offices dealing with the general public. The registration department, the lower judiciary and the like are all in this category and any one who attempt to do any thing anytime concerning these departments will immediately know how deep routed is this malady in our country. In India, we know this and that is the Indian way of life. No escape !
You cannot get a driving licence issued in the normal way, because such normal way systems are hidden from the public. But if you are ready to spend some excess amount over and above the fee prescribed by the law, then you can get the license within no time. You can even get the license without even undergoing the driving test! In 99% of the RTA offices, this is the situation. Of course there could be some exceptions here and there.
Have you ever analysed the reason for this ? Why such a thing is uncommon in the developed nations?
Let us try to analyse this situation. Corruption here starts from the officers of the government authorized to issue the licenses. Say the Inspectors and the Issuing Authorities, called the Regional Transport Authorities. Some officers are responsible for examining the individuals and check their driving competencies and then issue the licenses, only when they are convinced that the individual has the required proficiency in driving. The assessment here is not based on any quantifiable inputs, but on the basis on the true conviction of the assessment officer on the basis of his witnessing the driving test physically demonstrated before him. The officer can also ask questions about road safety rules and things like that.
But what happens here is that most officers do not venture for such a thing now. In some states, like in Kerala, the officers are stricter and conduct the assessment in a stricter way and in some other states like Madhya Pradesh, the checking is just a cursory one.
Now you can see that the issue of license is based on qualitative assessment of the assessment officer. The assessment officer is free to decide on the issue any way he likes. He is free to be whimsical or he is free to be just and strict. It is purely up to him.
In such a scenario, what happens? If he is going to be just and strict, it causes some hurdle to me and you to get the license. We have to really learn driving and its rules. In that case, the drivers on the roads will be people with real competency the roads would be much safer and disciplined. The real purpose of issuing license for driving would have been met.
Now, if we are characterless people, we try to circumvent the situation and would try getting the license, the easier way. That is by luring the assessment officer for easing his strictness. So we are ready to bribe that officer and the officer is ready to get bribed and oblige!
So within no time, the licensing office becomes a collection center for illegal money.
The RTA officers and staff now have an opportunity to make an extra income in liquid cash, not accounted any where. The amount varies from person to person and location to location. In some places, the persons concerned makes easy money many times more than their monthly salaries. Now these officers are vested with many other such powers, where whimsical decision making is possible and consequently, opportunity for making illegal cash through bribes.
The RTA officers and staff have become collection agents for black money. The story is not ending here.
They have to shell out the ill gotten money to their superiors, at least some portion of it. Otherwise they will get transferred to some remote areas where the opportunity for making such money is less or shunted out to some posts where there is no scope for making such monies.
So from the lower collection centers and individuals the higher authorities get the share, all in black. From the lower government employees the money flows. The political bigwigs then fight for getting 'important' portfolios in the ministries. The 'importance' here comes from the opportunity for making big cash.
Who is corrupt here ? Who is to be blamed?
I say, it is we the public. We are those small payers from whom the big black money gets generated.
If we decide to get our licenses in the normal way and decides not to pay those extra small sums to ease out our one time difficulties, this corruption could have been eliminated.
But one or two individuals in public cannot do it. There has to be a majority conviction for that. The majority in the public should have character and conviction!
If that is not feasible, then the officers of the RTA has to be people of character, conviction and competency.
That can happen only when the authorities above them have the same qualities.
That too seems difficult now.
So, a characterless society with characterless people cannot eradicate corruption !
If the majority of the individuals in the society or country are weak and characterless, they are are likely to be corrupt either actively or passively.
In such societies corruption will be an inherent phenomenon.
Any attempt of fighting corruption by such a society is bound to enhance the penetration and effects of corruption and make the situation worse and worse!
Source: BewareIndia Website
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ReplyDeleteSpeaking English Uk
You know if we seriously desire for a corruption-free society, decent political atmosphere, has to put genuine commitment in our own mindset, most of the communities (such as Bengali or Punjabi) in this sub-continent are covered by ‘Culture of Poverty' (hopelessness), irrespective of class or economic strata, lives in pavement or apartment. We are not ashamed of the deep-rooted corruption in this society at heart, decaying general quality of life, bad Politico-Governance, poor work place, weak mother language, continuous consumption of common Social Space. We love to become parents only by self-procreation (blindfold support by lame excuses, followed by the very animal instinct) depriving their(the children) fundamental rights of a caring society, fearless & dignified living. Never search for other positive alternative gesture, a passionate way of parenthood, stop giving birth to any child him/herself till it improves up to the mark, co-parenting children those are born out of extreme poverty, instead. A deliberate attempt to touch the core of the society. Induce reasonableness in our (pool of insensitive persons) way of life. If a pure freedom or empowerment is desired from vicious cycle of poverty, rotten capitalism need to involve ourselves in 'Production of space' movement, clean & quality Politics would certainly come up. SB, 16/4, Girish Banerjee Lane, Howrah - 711 101.
ReplyDeleteYour anguish is understandable, Sidhartha. But unless we are prepared to shed our helplessness, we would not be able to achieve our goals of improving our society. Please read what I wrote on this topic on other blogs as well. search for 'corruption' in the search box on the right top. Create more and more awareness among your contemporaries. Share these blogs and encourage others like you to express out their feelings. Best Wishes!
DeleteTruthful observation.
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