January 4, 2020
THE ISSUE OF CORRUPTION
People have been either fighting corruption or victims of it for decades. But, they have not succeed because of the strength and entrenched nature of the force they are battling. It dominates every section of the society. And with the attitude of people nowadays it seems to be getting worse. If the idea of getting something for nothing persists or the idea that there are shortcuts to success, greedy and corrupt people will believe, practice and get rich by this means. So, we have two possible means to minimize corruption, namely education about the ills of it or severe punishment by the law.
Some believe that Corruption is well protected in this country and that there is no political will to root out this menace.
This leads one to ask some difficult questions, including: “if we all agree that corruption is pervasive and destructive to a nation, why does it seem nothing is being done to stop it?” and, “is it that those with the political clout are benefiting from it?” Hence, transparency and accountability are something only on paper and laws are usually ignored in most of cases and followed in few isolated cases.
Corruption disproportionately impacts the poor and most vulnerable in every society, including in our country. It leads to increasing costs and a reduction in access to services, including health, education, and justice. Poor people find it difficult to get justice because of corruption and get frustrated by endless adjournment of their court cases.
Other examples of corruption that people allege comes in the procurement of drugs and medical equipment driving up the costs and leading to sub-standard or harmful products, icluding some of the counterfeit medical drugs allegedly imported from Asia. If not for corruption, how would such drugs enter our country. Corruption affects us all, which is why this should be a collective fight!
