Thursday, 15 August 2013

INSTITUTIONALIZING CORRUPTION

SOCIALIZATION IN A CORRUPT SOCIETY
Corruption should be the worst acts in our modern history, albeit in human history. In my honest opinion it is one of the most demoralizing acts, one that leaves me wondering how on earth we can accept to stoop so low to such. Corruption builds a lawless society where we consciously accept to kill our morals and condone out right human killings and underdevelopment; through the ripple effects that corruption brings about. I at times subconsciously akin bribe taking by the law enforcing institutions of our republic, the traffic police for instance as extension officers from the Kenya Revenue Authority. Even though I cannot fathom exactly how much they collect daily, but one thing is sure the economy stand to lose from such acts that go scot free avoiding the taxman noose at their watch! The loss must be in billions!!

The duration to stump out these scourge as I would like to call it, is what concerns me. I take the judicial system in the country for instance. It took close to half a century for it to barely be credible . Thanks to the Judicial Reforms that had been undertaken with some credible seriousness and which at last bore some fruits. I hope the police reforms too will follow suit but this time round in an amicable  manner  and swift time frame, given its sensitivity and its significance to the public and the region at whole.

I really don’t have anything personal with the law enforcing sector though, but it being at the top in the country on corruption and bribery clearly worries me to the bone. How on earth can a country be in a state of lawlessness? Or let me call it institutionalized corruption… I know it sounds so surreal given that life moves on and may be it does not affect everyone at the same time to create ‘the crisis’ but surely this is totally absurd. ( Kenya Police top three most corrupt in EA  http://bit.ly/14fpSHS)

Being socialized into this kind of rot is even more dangerous given the ripple effect it will generate. A society that accepts to toa kitu kidogo to have certain services and acts be done, which according to the law are supposed to be offered freely. I am not wrong to claim that this mentality of tuna omba serikali is a product of this socialization. 

It is therefore rife for the public in general and the government to fast track reforms in all major institutions and bring about a culture and a norm where responsibility and integrity are held close to everyone’s heart. This will help transform the county and its subjects into a conscious society that gives no room to apathy and lack of responsibility especially in state owned institutions. It’s with this kind of socialization where individuals who have failed to deliver or who have failed to stop a menace, will find it morally right to resign and give other technocrats a chance to bring sanity in former organizations.