Transparency, corporate corruption and Anti-Corruption Commission

Corruption, in our opinion, is not mere taking and giving of financial bribe. It includes lots of tangible and intangible ingredients of general human behaviour. Corruption is indeed a decomposition of values -- moral, social, economic, political, cultural and intellectual, and has co-existed with human society as a state of moral, debasement, and perversion from moral values characterised by bribery, illegal gratification, misuse of public power for private ends, illegal collections from contracts and businesses, nepotism etc. etc.

In Bangladesh, corruption has decomposed administrative principles, sanctity of elections and politics, trade, educational system, professions, intellectualism, governance and money market etc. Corruption is, by and large, treated in Bangladesh, particularly in audit reports, as mere irregularity. It is seen also as political hostility and treated by ambitious and clever businessmen, contractors as lucrative investment in elections for deferred payment of dividends. Open or masked corruption is a historical phenomenon. Petty corruption of the small men and big corruption of the powerful guys are not quantifiable in arithmetic terms, although their impacts are palpably felt.

Recently TIB disclosed reports on corruption in Chittagong Customs in press conference. The disclosures estimated corruption in exact arithmetic terms thereby rendering the report controversial, and finger pointing at the integrity of TIB's agents and informants. The gradation of Bangladesh made by Transparency International has also generated political controversy because of supposed inaccuracy of estimate of corruption in arithmetic terms which are highly unreliable.

The press reports of TIB are, indeed, serious and should be taken seriously by the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC). TIB certainly possesses the names of bribe-givers and bribe-takers of Chittagong Customs and can bring the miscreants to the notice of the ACC for enquiry, and start action against proven delinquents. TI should, in our opinion, take care to make sure that its tentacles in countries are composed of persons who are free from political bias.

In the Corruption Perception Index of 2002 published in The Economist Pocket World in Figures 2004 edition, ranks of 92 countries were shown based on how much corruption was perceived to exist among politicians and public officials. We quote a few (10 least corrupt) countries with which Bangladesh has close socio-economic relations -- UK 8.7, USA 7.7, Germany 7.3, Japan 7.1 France 6.3, Italy 5.2, Malaysia 4.9, China 3.5, Thailand 3.2, India 2.7, Russia 2.7, Pakistan 2.6. If the flagrant corruptions of multinational and national corporations are brought into perception and consideration, the above picture would show a different scenario.

The role of the Canadian multinational resource company (NIKO) in manipulating gas agreements with BAPEX in a joint venture strategy of profit-making is largely demonstrative of the lack of adequate knowledge of Bangladesh about multinational corporate strategies and operation modalities in LDCs. The recent scam of a luxury car of NIKO in the use of the State Minister of Energy, is perhaps a part of much bigger scams of earlier days when the company started its negotiations with Bangladesh. Proper transparency was all through apparently absent in the NIKO venture in Bangladesh.

History shows how corruption ruled humanity and civilizations and has been ruling nowadays in every country through various agencies. A Roman Governor used to fleece his province in order to win election for his next ambition of consulship. He deposited money with Magistrates to buy votes and bribe jurors in election disputes, supplied people with corn at low price on the eve of election, gave before election free gladiatorial show to citizens. Romans perceived that when their constitutional liberty was at the pinnacle of glory, corruption reached its high water-mark. So, they started to believe that their goddess of liberty was perhaps corrupt. In 432 BC, the emperor prohibited political badge, canvassing except in public meeting, introduced ballot box to protect voters from corrupt election agents. Julius Caesar introduced nomination of Senators. The Roman Empire was in the grip of corruption.

In Greece, the Generals betrayed their cities for bribe. In Carthage, the throne was saleable. In the Stuart period, a British MP did not generally do anything for voters without bribe. Papers were fastened around heads of corrupt jurors showing their delinquencies. Justice Bacon was dismissed for corruption. British East India Company is known to have provided cash capital of British industries. The price of real estates was raised when officials of the company were on home leave. In the United States, President Lincoln as a petty postal clerk faced corruption charge. Foreign Missions, Military Contracts etc. belong to the victors in the USA "Spoil System."

Multi-national corporations are generally looked upon in USA as harbingers of resource transfer and also as engines of corruption. During the Presidency of Gerald Ford, many big corporations were brought before court by the Internal Revenue Service for frauds and corruption. Other companies voluntarily appeared before court and sought device of relief. No punishment was, however, awarded to MNCs on the report of the high-powered enquiry by a Cabinet Panel on the ground that USA international business would suffer if MNCs and their executives were not allowed to make pay-off where necessary. The leaders of MNCs in USA were Gulf Oil, Phillip Petroleum, Occidental Petroleum, North-drop, General Telephone and Electronics, Goodyear Tyre (NY Times, March 29, 1976).

The Lockhead Aircraft Corporation admitted paying out more than $20 m in bribe to various persons in Japan, Turkey, Italy, Spain, Netherlands, South America, Nigeria and Columbia to facilitate sale of aircraft. The indictment of Tanaka and other VIP's of Japan was a shame. Prince Bernhard of Netherlands was accused in a bribe of $ 1.2m paid to Peron and Argentina to clinch $100m rail road contract for a Dutch firm. The bribe was 'authorised' by the Dutch State Bank and 'approved' by the government (Time, March, 1976).

As economic historian Theodore Salontos pointed out, businessmen and business institutions had been a target for critics and reformers in western societies for a long time.

In ancient India, corruption was treated seriously and punished with banishment. Innocence was subjected to poison test, fire test etc. The Sultanate of Delhi and some of the later-day Mughals were not free from corruption, in spite of Quranic prohibitions. British East India Company looted Bengal and other provinces and softly treated Indian revenue officers and police. Indian corruption got Philip during 1st and 2nd world war in state contracts, purchases, procurements and price controls. In India and Pakistan corruption has been rampant in disposal of evacuee property, business and bureaucracies, relief and rehabilitation operations and development projects. The same facets continued in Bangladesh and have now assumed gigantic scale in all segments of life to grip the nation and its economy, polity and social milieu for want of strong political, administrative and legal will to contain its growth and magnitude.

Scams in stock exchanges, land acquisitions, state purchases, contracts, distribution of funds, permission to set up bank, insurance company, development expenditure, construction works, export and import invoices, system-loss-strategy, audit system, land and revenue administration, elections, bank loans, debt defaults, law and order and customs etc. have spread to professions, education and trafficking in women and children etc. etc. and gripped national development and creativity.

The Bureau of Anti-Corruption (BAC) was made a handmaid of political regimes in Bangladesh and manned by politicalised officials. Cases accumulated, investigation and trial remained pending in thousands. The general public reaction against corruption in Bangladesh looks like a general sense of resignation and apathy. There are lack of political consensus and presence of deep-seated political divisiveness among and between the major contenders of political power who still consider a case of clear corruption and crime against them or their activists as a case of planned political hostility to create public agitation for political ends. Such a situation cannot be expected to create a national consensus on cooperative and concerted effort for reduction of corruption.

The independent Anti-Corruption Commission established about eight months ago by abolishing BAC could not yet demonstrate its capability to prepare its organogram and rules and regulations, and scheme of screening out BAC officials, but left such important matters to outside authorities who had no idea of anti-corruption enquiry and investigation under the Code of Criminal Procedure and the Law of Evidence. To crown all crises of ACC, the appointment of the Chairman has been challenged judicially and legally. The debilitating effect of all these episodes has been disastrous for ACC which has to complete thousands of accumulated enquiries and investigations, and arrange for the trial of age-old cases pending against both VIPs and pigmies in the court.

In our opinion, it was not correct on the part of ACC to look down upon all officials of BAC as unworthy of trust and retention in their job, on the basis of a summary assumption that the BAC became lacklustre and ineffective because of its officials. We believe in the maxim that the zeal of reform must be slow and cautious. Our memory has not yet faded about the effectiveness of BAC when there was no political interference in its operation. We still remember the weekly bulletin published in the leading dailies on the performance of BAC and cases started on the basis of traps. ACC should follow this practice and organise itself effectively and retain its independence in the interest of welfare of the nation.

A. Khaleque is former IG, Police and Secretary.