All pervasive corruption

Bribery is a part of life for most Bangladeshis. It is, if not condoned, at least accepted by most as inevitable. As a matter of fact, for most Bangladeshis bribery is “almost expected” more often than not. And this consequently means that much of the time it’s wearingly or grudgingly accepted. Rarely do we see people here exploding with anger at institutionalised corruption.

There is hardly any service seeker in Bangladesh who can avail of the intended service without greasing the palms of corrupt public sector officials. Only the rich and powerful (and those having a connection with influential quarters) can get away without paying bribes. This sad reality was reflected in a just-released TIB (Transparency International Bangladesh) survey.

According to the survey, as many as 71 per cent of Bangladeshi households had to pay bribes to get services in 2021. The revelation while shocking is not surprising. Every household, on average, has to pay a bribe of Tk 6,636 annually.

The fact that corruption is eating away at the vitals of Bangladesh’s economy is widely known. Unfortunately, corruption has thrived under virtually all the governments that have been in power in the country. The governments in question have all promised to establish a powerful anti-corruption body. However Bangladeshi politicians, generally speaking, are firm believers in the adage “Promises are meant to be broken” and the strengthening of the Anti-Corruption Commission has never found a place in their actual list of priorities.

Of course, the powers that be are always ready to utter inane platitudes about the need to curb corruption. The reality is they are not willing to empower the ACC to investigate the powerful sections of the society or even to effectively pursue the lower-level officials who make life an expensive hell for Bangladeshis seeking driving licences, passports and other important documents. Our country has a rather poor record of creating and maintaining institutions that are free of bribery and corruption.

It is not too difficult to find out why people get corrupt. Surely nobody is born corrupt nor have the scientists unravelled a ‘corruption gene.’ The reason is to be found in the time tested saying ‘Power corrupts.” Certainly not everyone, but the majority of those who can wield power are prone to corruption.

We cannot deny that according to the strict definition of the term the common people of this country are also corrupt. With the system being what it is they have no option but to indulge in some form of corruption. It is a matter of survival.

The common man has to be corrupt so that he can survive. The purchasing power of the taka has gone down drastically. On the other hand prices of all essentials are going up. The bribe giver is always in a precarious position. He knows that if he tries to expose the bribe taker, he may be punished himself since the laws are made by the bribe taker. Any potential whistle-blower is at grave risk. He knows that the system he is trying to expose can strike him down since all power and legitimacy is with the powerful corrupt politician or bureaucrat. The reality is that the costs of not giving bribes are to lose out on whatever one wants or suffer long delays and harassment before one gets it.

Bribery indeed is a matter of grave concern to this country which is already plagued by political violence, inflation and general instability. And even more alarming is the fact that a culture has developed which believes that there is nothing wrong with being corrupt and it is the one thing. When virtually everyone is corrupt, corruption becomes the norm.

In such dismal state of affairs, the question of accountability does not arise. Only lucrative and emotionally charged speeches and pledges can never come up to the expectations of the people. Rule of law is the only option that can pave way for accountability.