Perceived corruption legitimises dishonesty

Summary - The conviction of Schabir Shaik has raised questions about the relationship between political power and private economic interests. To some, the judgment confirmed suspicions that venality has become one of the defining characteristics of the manner in which the new political class engages with the transition from apartheid to the post-apartheid democratic order.

More importantly, it challenges South African society to be more vigorous in its examination of the extent to which corruption may be contributing to a decline in political morality and the corrosion of the rectitude of public servants.

The definition of corruption is frequently related to the political identity both of those who define it and those who are accused of perpetrating it. Creating perceptions of corruption is a useful tool for the destruction of political opponents.

In the heat of political battle distinctions are seldom drawn between the real and the perceived when political parties engage with allegations of nefarious conduct.

This, however, does not mean that our country is not faced with a serious challenge, the nature of which is often distorted by focusing only on corruption cases involving leading members of the ruling party. A more accurate perception of the incidence of subornation in public affairs requires probing all manifestations of the problem and understanding that the cumulative effect of corruption among low-ranking politicians and public servants is more devastating to our political culture, moral fabric and the economy.

The service delivery protests, for instance, indicate how the capacity of local government is hamstrung by corrupt councillors and officials. But reports of widespread corruption in local government are not matched by the number of convictions or the frequency of administrative action against offenders. Corruption at local government level is exacerbated by a shortage of skills, lack of proper systems and the fact that many councils are unable to design early warning systems and effective detection methods.

Despite the establishment of “agencies of restraint” to deal with corruption, it remains a major threat to our democracy and events have shown that these agencies are themselves not immune from the scourge.

Access to political power is no longer an end in itself, it has become a means to the achievement of economic ends and the ability to influence political decisions in a manner that advances narrow economic agendas by forging mutually beneficial relations with those who occupy centres of political power and influence. In this context sections of the private sector in their interface with political society and the public sector may be one of the drivers of corruption.

Underdevelopment is another factor, potentially creating a climate for both corruption and destructive forms of political competition. As we approach the next local government elections, political contests at local level will intensify because becoming a local councillor may be the ticket many need to escape their current conditions of poverty and unemployment, conditions that also drive the corrupt behaviour of many in local government.

Corruption, whether perceived or real, has a corrosive effect on the legitimacy of the state, giving ordinary citizens and low-ranking public servants the opportunity to defend it in terms of the perceived nefarious conduct of leading politicians and senior public servants. Corruption poses a major challenge to the ruling party and the country as a whole because the day may come when ordinary people decide to withdraw from political processes in protest against the excesses of leading political figures. To avoid this, the greed that feeds corrupt behaviour must not be allowed to destroy the soul of a young and promising democracy.

The conviction of Schabir Shaik on two counts of corruption and one of fraud has raised questions — not for the first time — about the relationship between political power and private economic interests. In his judgment, Judge Hilary Squires made the damning finding that there was a “generally corrupt” relationship between Shaik and former deputy president Jacob Zuma. To some, the judgment confirmed suspicions that venality has become one of the defining characteristics of the manner in which the new political class engages with the transition from the apartheid state to the post-apartheid democratic order.

More importantly, it challenges South African society to be more vigorous in its examination of the extent to which the cancer of corruption may be contributing to a decline in political morality and the corrosion of the rectitude of our public servants.

Since the construction of a post-apartheid reality presupposes tensions in conceptions about the role played by the new political elite in creating conditions for “a better life for all”, corruption tends to be defined in ways that fail to transcend the limitations of narrow political agendas. In some cases, the extent to which allegations of corruption are believed depends on the political identity individuals have constructed and on whether the persons who are accused of corruption are hostile to that identity or not.

Thus, in the high profile and politically-charged Zuma case, the objective reality of his innocence or guilt on charges of corruption seems to matter less than the impact his supporters and detractors believe his prosecution will have on our political landscape.

A definition of corruption I have found helpful is contained in an article that was published in Southern Africa Political and Economic Monthly (SAPEM) in June 1995. In the article it is argued that, “for the person in the street, corruption is associated with all that is unsavoury about those in power, bad government, inefficiency and extortion”. Furthermore, “corruption represents the degeneration of leadership and officialdom, gross dishonesty and greed, it reflects the highest level of unaccountability in a society which, therefore, can hardly be democratic in its political, social and economic conduct”. Because mass political behaviour tends to be perception-driven, the perceptions of corruption in the popular imagination, in its details and generalities, is as important as the reality.

In the heat of political battle distinctions are seldom drawn between the real and the perceived when political parties engage with allegations of nefarious conduct. This, however, does not mean that our country is not faced with a serious challenge. The nature of the challenge is often distorted by focusing only on the corruption cases of leading members of the ruling party. While the cases of Winnie Madikizela-Mandela, Tony Yengeni and Jacob Zuma are good material for screaming newspaper headlines, a more accurate understanding of the incidence of subornation in public affairs is a function of probing all manifestations of the problem with the understanding that the cumulative effect of corruption by low-ranking politicians and public servants is more devastating to our political culture, moral fabric and the economy.

It is for this reason that the service delivery protests against municipalities should be used as an indicator of how the capacity of local government is partly hamstrung by corrupt councillors and officials. The problem, however, is that reports of widespread corruption in local government are not matched by the number of convictions and the frequency of administrative action against offenders. The incidence of corruption at local government level especially in small towns is exacerbated by a shortage of skills, lack of proper systems and poor process design. This means that many of these councils lack the capacity to design early warning systems and effective detection methods. This lack of capacity is partly responsible for the high levels of corruption in provinces such as the Eastern Cape where children go hungry because of the mismanagement of school feeding schemes and the abuse of social grants by unscrupulous public servants.

Despite the fact that our government has established what the literature refers to as “agencies of restraint” to deal with corruption, there is no doubt that corruption remains a major threat to our democracy. The fact that a deputy director in the National Prosecuting Authority faced allegations of corruption when he was supposed to be investigating the corruption of officials in the Mpumalanga province shows that the “agencies of restraint” are themselves not immune from the scourge.

Given the fact that our democracy is a product of a liberation struggle, why is there such a serious betrayal of the values and principles that informed the noble fight against apartheid?

The answer lies in appreciating that the ruling party and our democratic government have become some of the key instruments of class formation. In other words, access to political power is no longer an end in itself. It has become a means towards the achievement of economic ends. Access to political power means also the ability to influence political decisions in a manner that advances narrow economic agendas by forging mutually beneficial relations with those who occupy centres of political power and influence. It is in this context that the corrupting role of sections of the private sector in their interface with political society and the public sector may be one of the drivers of corruption.

A decade ago Transparency International estimated that 15 per cent of the total amount involved in international transactions was paid to heads of state, government ministers and senior government officials in the form of bribes. To those who believe that politicians in this country benefited corruptly from the arms deal this is a useful statistic. The conviction of Schabir Shaik and the trial of Jacob Zuma will surely fuel perceptions of tailor-made tender processes.

Another factor is the relationship between corruption and underdevelopment. In fact conditions of underdevelopment may produce a climate for both corruption and destructive forms of political competition. The uncertainties of political life serve as a powerful incentive for politicians who do not have alternative careers to fall back on. In a society that is becoming increasingly materialistic and that seems obsessed with the vulgar display of wealth, greed has become the religion of the moneyed and powerful.

As we approach the next local government elections, political contests at local level are going to intensify because becoming a local councillor may be the ticket many need to escape their current conditions of poverty and unemployment. It is these same conditions that drive the corrupt behaviour of many in local government.

But we must always bear in mind that creating perceptions of corruption is a useful political tool that can destroy political opponents but unfortunately result in the injudicious deployment of public resources when “agencies of restraint” such as the police and the Scorpions are forced to investigate baseless allegations. This caveat notwithstanding, we are in a position to break down the phenomenon of corruption to different categories on the basis of both alleged and proven cases. We can safely say that corruptions tends to manifest itself in the following ways:

• Policy decisions that are made in pursuit of private economic interests
• Tailor-made tenders
• Policy decisions that are made to benefit business entities that a politician or senior public servant will join on leaving the public service
• Extortion
• Bribery
• Fraud

The problem with the reality and perception of corruption is that it legitimises further acts of corruption and has a corrosive effect on the legitimacy of the state. Ordinary citizens and low-ranking public servants can defend corruption in terms of the perceived nefarious conduct of leading politicians and senior public servants. Police officers who take bribes from motorists or illegal immigrants may justify their greed by pointing to the alleged improprieties of the powerful.

But what is disturbing is evidence of how corruption may be behind delivery failures, as manifest by abandoned or half-completed projects and the provision of shoddy houses approved by suborned building inspectors.

Corruption poses a major challenge to the ruling party and the country as a whole because the day may come when ordinary people decide to withdraw from political processes in protest against the excesses of leading political figures. To avoid this, the greed that feeds corrupt behaviour must not be allowed to destroy the soul of a young and promising democracy.