Adil Najam
I did not know that December 9 was the “International Anti-Corruption Day.” Nor that it would be observed in Pakistan along with Eid. I learnt this and saw this picture at Islamabad Metroblog, and didn’t really know how to react to it.
Yes, saying “No” will help. But maybe it will take a little more than just saying “No.”
On the other hand, there are plenty of reasons why we should observe the day “Anti-Corruption” day in Pakistan. Would’nt it be just wonderful if we observed it every day!
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iFaqeer:
The point about living wages for public servents may be true of lower level ones, but not for bureaucrats, politicians and generals. The problem at the upper end is that Zardari is considered a “legitimate” president despite the findings of a Swiss court and the generals are also untouchable. Every time we call Zardari a legitimate president despite his Swiss conviction (which also constitutionally disqualifies him), we are contributing towards the perpetuation of large scale corruption.
At the lower end, the motorway police is a good example where providing better salaries has made a difference. However, the question is how long the motorway police will continue to be efficient before the rot in the political system also affects them. If we do not push people like Zardari back soon enough, then it’s only a matter of time before that happens.
I am a close-to-40 Pakistani and have been around and around as many times as any other Pakistani. But I am with Deeda-i-Beena’s 1st point on this. Until we ALL sit up and first ensure (not just talk about; not just whine…ENSURE) a living wage for ALL our public servants (and ESPECIALLY the lowest ranked ones) we have really NO right to expect, much less demand an end to corruption. The British Raj set up our law enforcement and bureaucratic structures in such a way as to set up an adversarial relationship with the general population. Until we change that, we’re all just indulging our intellects when we talk about this.
I think the celebration of an Anti-Corruption day in Pakistan is a great example of how meaningless most, if not all international days really are. As a marketing professional working in Pakistan, I know just how great these days are for marketing products and services, as well as showing corporate social responsibility (CSR) even though the organization may not actually believe in CSR.
Some people might take these events seriously, but I think they’re only kidding themselves. I wonder how many people woke up that day and said “Hey, I won’t rob, or bribe, or do anything unethical today!”