Time for an independent ombudsman against graft

The United Nations Convention against Corruption (UNCAC), the major treaty guiding anti-corruption work worldwide, does not explicitly define corruption. But the treaty, which entered into force in December 2005, includes a series of offenses that should be criminalized and fall under its jurisdiction. 

The purposes of this convention are: (a) To promote and strengthen measures to prevent and combat corruption more efficiently and effectively (b) To promote, facilitate and support international cooperation and technical assistance in the prevention of and fight against corruption, including in asset recovery and c) To promote integrity, accountability and proper management of public affairs and public property. 

Unlike the UNCAC, Transparency International (TI) and the World Bank (WB) appear to have no qualms about defining this scourge. TI defines corruption as the ‘abuse of entrusted power for private gain’ whereas the WB describes it as the ‘abuse of public office for private gain’.

In its website (transparency.org), TI further states: Corruption erodes trust, weakens democracy, hampers economic development and further exacerbates inequality, poverty, social division and the environmental crisis. Exposing corruption and holding the corrupt to account can only happen if we understand the way corruption works and the systems that enable it.

The World Bank Group states in its website (worldbank.org) that it considers corruption “a major challenge to its twin goals of ending extreme poverty by 2030 and boosting shared prosperity for the poorest 40 percent of people in developing countries”. 

It adds: Corruption has a disproportionate impact on the poor and most vulnerable, increasing costs and reducing access to services, including health, education and justice. Corruption in the procurement of drugs and medical equipment drives up costs and can lead to sub-standard or harmful products. The human costs of counterfeit drugs and vaccinations on health outcomes and the life-long impacts on children far exceed the financial costs. Unofficial payments for services can have a particularly pernicious effect on poor people. 

J S Nye describes corruption as “behavior which deviates from the formal duties of a public role because of private-regarding (personal, close family, private clique) pecuniary or status gains; or violates rules against the exercise of certain types of private-regarding influence.”

Drawing from these definitions, one can conclude that corruption is a scourge that can cause the multiple organ failure of states, lead to their ultimate collapse and threaten the world order too. 

How it works?

It takes two to tango. But corruption, policy corruption in particular, is way more complex than the famous Argentinian ballroom dance. Corruption seems to have given even King Prithvi Narayan Shah, one of the re-unifiers of Nepal, a pretty hard time. Otherwise, why would the powerful king declare through his Divyopadesh that the givers and the recipients of bribes were the biggest enemies of this country? 

The great king’s take on bribery is a pointer to a chronic and stubborn scourge sapping this country of its energies for ages. 

Corruption, policy corruption in particular, has been plaguing Nepal even after epochal political changes in the 1950’s, the 1990’s and in 2005-06, effected on the strength of popular movements launched for higher ideals like democracy, national sovereignty, human dignity, human rights and transparency. 

What do major scandals witnessed since the 1950’s point at? They point at institutionalization of corruption through a rigged polity, marked by weakening of the very walls separating the organs of the state and the system of checks and balances. 

Of course, there are various authorities in place, including the Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA), the courts and law enforcement agencies, to take on corruption. But they all lack teeth when it comes to dealing with policy corruption.

On top of it, whenever a major scam unravels, the government of the day swiftly constitutes commissions and committees to get to the root, identify the guilty and initiate legal action against them. 

But recent investigations into some of the most high-profile scams show the long arm of the law falling quite short when it comes to bringing the apex predators of the complex food web called policy corruption under the ambit of law. 

Interestingly, such investigations have never covered several treasonous bi-national treaties and agreements, effected with the consent of the sovereign Parliament (manufactured or otherwise) or without the consent, though several of such instruments have been negatively impacting generations of Nepalis and will continue to do so for ages, if the State takes no steps for their amendment. 

Also, TI’s annual reports show Nepal in an unenviable position in terms of the global corruption perception index (CPI), with a score ranging from 27 to 35 out of 100. This is hardly surprising in a society that worships power and wealth, regarding the rich and the powerful people as thula manchhe (‘great people’) without bothering to do a background check on such people, the source of their power and wealth, etc. While the holders of highest public offices responsible for making final decisions in cases of policy corruption go scot-free, the law unevenly applies to subordinate functionaries involved in paperwork.

The way forward

The weakening of the walls separating the principal organs of the state and the system of checks and balances means the State lacks the will to take on corruption, policy corruption in particular. This calls for those crusading against corruption, including jurists, journalists, retired law enforcement officials, politicians and retired bureaucrats to constitute an ombudsman, probe all major cases of policy corruption since the 1950’s in a free and fair manner, and make the findings public, as part of a relentless campaign against corruption. 

Here’s hoping that this move will put our fledgling State under tremendous moral pressure to act really tough against corruption.