Canada and the World
Current Events with a Canadian Perspective
Last update
04 November 2011
Corruption Cripples Pakistan
The paying of bribes for government services
and the diversion of aid money are endemic in
Pakistan from the lowliest to the highest officials
Pakistan is suffering from daily acts of terrorism carried out by religious extremists, the vast majority of its people live in extreme poverty, it has been struck by a massive flood disaster that a dysfunctional government seems unable to cope with, and it has an ingrained system of corruption that makes solving these problems next to impossible.
Slow Response to Devastating Floods
United Nations Development Program
According to Oxfam the recent floods in Pakistan are the worst in living memory: “More than 1,700 people are thought to have died, with almost 21 million people affected. This is more than the Indian Ocean tsunami, the Haiti earthquake, and the 2005 Kashmir earthquake put together.”
And yet, the rest of the world seems strangely unmoved by the tragedy. Is it donor fatigue over yet another terrible disaster in a distant part of the world about which little can be done?
Aid officials say that’s a factor, but there may be another issue at play – corruption.
As the anti-
Charity Funds Diverted to Personal Use
In a column first published in the Washington Post and widely reprinted around the world in September 2010, Ahmed Rashid writes that donors are refusing to give money to Pakistan’s government.
“Pakistanis are scandalized and embarrassed that their politicians, bureaucrats, and generals have fostered so much corruption for so long that nobody trusts them to deal fairly with the victims of the floods.”
He says there are reports that landowners and politicians have been breaching levees to save their own fields and have been interfering in the distribution of aid.
Corruption a Widespread Problem
In its 2010 report, Transparency International listed Pakistan as the 143th most corrupt country out of the 178 it surveyed.
Global Integrity’s 2008 report on Pakistan points out that the country, “has a very
strong anti-
There is poor accountability in government, political bias in the media, and a police
force that “remains ‘infested with political interference,’ with bribes a commonplace
occurrence.”
Writing for the Indus Asia Online Journal, (January 2010) Khalid Hashmani comments that “extreme poverty and lack of infrastructure and basic services in the rural areas of Sindh and Balochistan is in part fuelled by bribery, influence peddling, extortion, and abuse of power.”
He adds that failure to tackle these problems will “frustrate poor people and make them weary of the current democratic system and drive them to extremism.”
Corruption in Pakistan Starts at the Top
William Oddie in the U.K.’s Catholic Herald (August 2010) laments the poor response to the call for flood relief donations, which he blames on the widespread belief that the funds will be diverted to secret banks accounts.
“For a start,” asks Oddie “what about that £1.5 billion ($2.4 billion) which is the
personal fortune of President Ali Zardari (shown at left with former U.S. President
George W. Bush): where exactly did that come from? And how much of it will he be
giving to flood relief?”
BBC News (December 2009) points out that Zardari “spent several years in jail on charges of corruption. He was labelled ‘Mr 10%.’ ”
In 1990, he faced several charges including one of “tying a remote-
That charge was not proven, but he was convicted in a kickback scam involving a Swiss company.
Corruption Spreads from the Top
It’s said that a fish rots from the head and this seems to apply in the case of Pakistan. The contagion of shady behaviour has spread to the country’s cricket team.
In a sting operation, The News of the World (August 2010) uncovered a betting scam that involved players from the Pakistan national team.
In the fall of 2011 three Pakistani cricketers and an agent faced a judge in a British courtroom. They were found guilty of taking part in a betting scam and were sentenced to from six to 32 months in prison.
The players received a ban from all forms of cricket for five years. Many commentators say the men got off lightly.
If it was possible to tarnish Pakistan’s international reputation even more the cricket scandal has done it.
Sources
“Flooding in Pakistan.” Oxfam.
“U.K. and Pakistan: Fear of Misuse of Funds Should not Halt Humanitarian Aid to Pakistan.” Transparency International, August 19, 2010.
“Pakistan Must Gain People’s Trust,” Ahmed Rashid, Gulf News, September 14, 2010.
“Corruption in Pakistan Hurts Common People and Breeds Extremism.” Khalid Hashmani, Indus Asia Online Journal, January 23, 2010.
“If Corruption is not Tackled Urgently, Pakistan won’t get the Money it Needs.” William Oddie, Catholic Herald, August 27, 2010.
“Profile: Asif Ali Zardari.” BBC News, December 16, 2009.
“Caught.” The News of the World, Mazher Mahmood & Amanda Evans, August 29, 2010.
© Canada and the World, November 2011
All rights reserved
“In its wider sense, corruption includes one or more of bribery, extortion, fraud, deception, collusion, cartels, abuse of power, embezzlement, trading in influence and money laundering.”
Global Infrastructure Anti Corruption Center
BEST AND WORST
Ten least corrupt countries in the world:
Denmark
New Zealand
Singapore
Finland
Sweden
Canada
Netherlands
Australia
Switzerland
Norway
Ten most corrupt countries in the world:
Somalia
Myanmar
Afghanistan
Iraq
Uzbekistan
Turkmenistan
Sudan
Chad
Burundi
Equatorial Guinea
“A World Bank report containing an assessment of the Pakistan’s Infrastructure Capacity
dated February 2008 states that 15 percent of Pakistan’s Development budget for 2007-