Graft: Perception as bad as reality
 Both corruption and the perception of corruption  have a serious destabilising effect on the economy

Both corruption and the perception of corruption have a serious destabilising effect on the economy

Nick Mangwana View from the Diaspora
SAYING that we have to deal with corruption is not arming the opposition. It is the patriotic thing to say. If patriotism is some vigorous support of one’s country, then loyalty to the country involves opposing anything that does not serve the interests of the country.

In fact, Mark Twain said: “Patriotism is supporting your country all the time, and your government when it deserves it.”

So when this columnist withdraws support for certain Government actions or lack of actions, it’s not treachery.

It is patriotism.

And one of the most unpatriotic diseases afflicting our country is corruption.

The only problem is there is real corruption happening at a grand scale. But there is also some perception of corruption which is divorced from reality.

But for the country both the corruption and the perception of corruption are equally damaging.

The mere perception of corruption is breaking the link between citizens and their government. It is no longer an issue whether this is real or not.

The fact that it is perceived to be real is all that matters.

A few individuals are damaging how our institutions are perceived and eroding public confidence in these institutions.

Now we are grappling with a poisoned sentiment towards the establishment.

A little leaven has leavened the whole lump. There are things we just cannot allow.

Public resources should not be used for private gain. If, for example, a minister takes public resources and uses them to develop their home area so that they can be voted back in in the next election, no amount of justification can sanitise this. It is still public funds used for private gain with a serendipitous public benefit. It, therefore, is corruption.

Suspicion of deviation of public funds is as bad as the deviation itself. There are highly successful people in Zimbabwe whose wealth originates from legitimate and clean enterprise. These are lumped together with those stealing from the public purse and those who peddle influence for financial return. It is the belief that the corrupt are getting away with it that makes it easy to cast aspersions upon innocent people.

The only way this tarnishing of the Government image can be stopped is by having some high-ups arrested and successfully prosecuted. And for this to be effective, it is important that there be no factional angle. Though this may be difficult because factions have become a refuge for the malfeasant.

Whoever is caught on the wrong side of the law now tries to hide behind accusations that they are being persecuted because they have refused to join a faction or such banal factional nonsense. Many a time it would have nothing to do with the succession matrix but sheer greed. When we stop acting because of the conjured political angle we show a weakness.

Just from the above one can see that both corruption and the perception of corruption have a serious destabilising effect on the economy.

Like many pieces in this column, this one is calling for serious action. ZACC (Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission) is not inspiring confidence in the public. But this is an institute in which people should have confidence.

Since ZACC is not independent, it is a Government institution. If citizens have no confidence in ZACC it is logically viable to suggest that this may indicate that they either have less or no confidence in the Government. So the perception of corruption can create a chasm between the people and their Government

How important are these people we are letting damage the relationship between citizens and their Government? Everyone has heard all these excuses about there being no evidence of wrongdoing. That may be so, but surely if the people don’t believe it, it might as well be a lie. A brand is all about perception. Doesn’t our Government care about how it is viewed by its citizens?

If it doesn’t then it should. Its legitimacy and moral authority comes from the social contract it has with its citizens. The citizens have an obligation to pay their taxes and obey the laws. The State has an obligation to deliver services such as education, healthcare and security.

This only works well if the people have confidence in the State via its Government. And for them to have it they should trust State institutions such as the police and ZACC as well as other political institutions. So the effect of corruption whether just perceived or real cannot be underplayed. A few people cannot and should not be allowed to undermine the legitimacy and authority of the State. Those who man public institutions must make sure they deliver on their mandates.

When people have lost confidence in the system because they perceive it as corrupt they see theft in everything even where there is completely none. Here is an example; One of the biggest infrastructural projects ever to be undertaken in Zimbabwe is the forthcoming dualisation of Chrundu-Beitbridge highway. This project has already been mired in some unnecessary controversy.

The tender for this project was won by an Austrian company known as Geiger International. It is the understanding of this columnist that that Geiger has sourced its own finances which it will use to undertake the project. They will own the asset (highway) for a while as they recoup the cost and profits from running the project.

This is likely to be from toll fees and tax exemptions. After a period of 18 to 25 years the ownership of the highway will be transferred to the State. This is what is known as a BOOT (Build-Own- Operate & Transfer) model. It is a public private partnership (PPP) arrangement. Now, those who cared to look through Zim-Asset will see that this model was cited as one which was going to be used to finance infrastructural development.

This project has been pegged at circa $3 billion. Those who were talking of $27 billion for financing Zim-Asset please note that this is part of the financing of the programme. So part of the controversy is around the cost itself. Some feel the cost is overinflated. That may be so but it does look quite unlikely.

The World Bank says road construction in Sub-Saharan Africa costs around $850 000 per kilometre on a dual carriage way and $425 000/km for a single lane. Those who want to do the calculations for this project will see that it all adds up. So the controversy should not be about money but about some unwise political posturing by some politicians who claim that employment on this project should be on party lines.

That is immoral and should be condemned.

We are all Zimbabweans and this is our country. But from the money side of things we don’t seem to have anything untoward happening here. So why has this been embroiled in controversy?

The answer lies in the fact that we have not adequately dealt with the perception of corruption by dealing firmly with the corrupt people in our midst. So whenever big money is mentioned people see big looting as well.

There is such a thing in governance called horizontal accountability. This, in short, is when the public expectation that institutions such as Parliament, ZACC, the police and the judiciary will bring public officials to account and if need to they will be punished or censured for any malfeasance. If the public no longer has faith is their institutions to bring about horizontal accountability, then they either lose faith in the whole system and try to effect vertical accountability. That is normally a recipe for disaffection and direct action.

We are still very far away from this stage but we should address the view that our systems are institutionally corrupt. It does not bode well for any country for citizens to just believe that all ministers are “looters”. And it does not augur well for our democracy for the citizens to perceive all politicians as corrupt, too. Why would they bother voting when they believe that their votes are just licences to the feeding trough for those they put in power? This weakens the very institutions that have already shown a weakness.

We want Zimbabwe’s legal enforcement credibility to be re-established. At the moment it appears quite eroded. The fact that some believe they can get away with looting makes us attract the wrong type of investor who in many a case is the opportunistic kind. We cannot allow some people to think that corruption is normal and it is the way we should do things.

It is high time we stop viewing corruption as a misconduct. It is actually a crime and if our laws are not explicit enough then we should remedy that as a matter of priority.

There are honest politicians in Zimbabwe. There are incorruptible ministers in our Government and contrary to some unfounded beliefs, the majority of the people in Zanu-PF are not corrupt at all. All these people have become victims of a broad stroke of an imprecise brush dripping with black paint.

This has led to a blanket mistrust of the whole system.

This mistrust is damaging the amity between the citizen and the establishment. This mistrust should be managed. And the only way to manage mistrust is to bring accountability and transparency to the system. For there is a time when logic and evidence will not be able to able to alter the perception but action will.

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