The Ramifications of Corruption

India is considered as one of the most corrupt countries in the developing world. The post- independent India saw the gradual increase in corruption and decline in moral standards. The former prime-minister of India Mrs. Indira Gandhi justified corruption by saying it is a global phenomena. Now it is accepted by all economists that corruption became institutionalised during Mrs.Indira Gandhi's rule. There may be a few more corrupt countries than India either in Africa or in Asia. But India considers itself a technological and economic behemoth. Such a country cannot take pride in rampant corruption that prevails all over the country and in all spheres of life.

The average citizen of India cannot really afford the luxury of corruption. Whether one is a villager or an urbanite, no one can escape from the clutches of corruption. From conception to cremation, one's life is embroiled in corruption. A pregnant mother will not get adequate medical care if she cannot bribe the government doctor in the primary health centre. After the birth of the child the nurse demands huge sums of money especially from the father of a male child to show the baby. The father has to bribe the government clerk to obtain a birth certificate for the child. A good school education in India is prohibitively expensive. There is plenty of corruption in government schools, colleges and universities. In some universities one can buy a first class degree certificate for a price.

The traffic on Indian roads can at best be described as chaotic. Most of the drivers buy their driving license over the counter by bribing the road transport officers. How can one expect these drivers to be aware of traffic rules and regulations.

Then the average citizen wants to acquire a ration card and it is impossible to obtain without greasing the palms of the petty government officials. If the citizen decides to acquire a plot of land through any of the government agencies it will take decades and several thousands of rupees as bribe. The registration of the site is another expensive complex procedure. Of course, one's house plan will not be approved without payment of parallel and unofficial fees. Obtaining electricity and water connection involves additional bribes. Finally the house owner has to obtain a completion certificate and annual house tax, the fixation of which is usually done after sufficient number of officials are bribed.

Most of the city roads and highways are in a bad condition and they are full of pot-holes. Millions of vehicles ply on these bad roads and vehicular break downs are quite common. The vehicle owners are forced to spend thousands of crores of rupees on the upkeep of vehicles. The bad roads are a direct reflection of the degree of corruption that plagues the society. Even if a road is laid, it will not last even six months. Hence this wide spread corruption has not spared any one. If the hapless citizen has to go to a police station in connection with some theft, loss of vehicle, road accident, petty quarrel or passport verification, he will not be allowed to come out without paying a bribe. Nowadays, the police officers unabashedly accept bribes in front of the public.

If an average citizen gets involved in a court litigation, he would go through hell of an experience. He must be able to afford a good counsel's exorbitant fees, but also he should be prepared for a long expensive legal battle, which involves bribing of court officials. According to the former Chief Justice of Supreme court at least 50% of the judiciary is corrupt. In India, income tax officials are prohibited from prosecuting Judges and religious heads. No one can question them about the source of their wealth. Now, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh wants to bring about a legislation in the parliament to check corruption in Judiciary. Perhaps it is too little coming too late.

How can an average honest citizen survive in this shark infested ocean? Obviously, he gets sick and dies young. His life will be one of woe and sorrow. No one can be happy in such a society. The Right to Information Act gives very little consolation. A large number of talented young men and women emigrate to western countries to escape from this sordid corruption. The politicians, bureaucrats, bank officials, policemen and judicial officers possess neither conscience nor a sense of shame. All of them believe in the proverb, "Make hay while the sun shines". They also subscribe to the philosophy of grab and run culture. How can we ever even compare ourselves to such second world countries as Russia and China. India's image on the international stage is an image of rag tag nation with dishonest politicians. Only a proper value-based education and a pride in one's own country can bring about a change. No one utters the word "Patriotism" even by mistake anymore.

The Death of Two Dictators

The year 2006 witnessed the death of two dictators, who had many unique similarities. All dictators completely subscribe to the famous quotation of Lord Acton that "power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely". No dictator in the history of mankind is an exception to this. The twentieth century saw such great dictators as Hitler, Stalin, Mao, Mussolini, Idi Amin, Polpot, Gaddafi, Franco, Saddam Hussein and Pinochet. You can pick your favourite dictator from this short list. All of them were egoistical megalomaniacs, who had scant regard for human life. According to one estimate Stalin is supposed to have disposed of 10 million Russians and many of them died in Gulags in Siberia. Idi Amin preserved the innards of his enemies in his kitchen refrigerator and ate them at leisure.

Many Chileans, who lost their Kith and Kin wanted Pinochet to be tried and hanged for human rights violations. He dropped from air many dissenting teenagers into the sea, who died a horrible death even before reaching the surface of the sea. If human beings are dropped from a height of 30,000 feet the skin covering the body simply peels off. The eyes pop out of the socket and the person dies due to shock. The crimes of Pinochet, a military dictator is as ignominious as Saddam Hussein's. Pinochet by all reckoning killed more number of people than Saddam. But Pinochet lived a comfortable life in his villa and when he suffered a heart attack he was admitted to an expensive private hospital. No one dared to hang him. The moot question is, is it because he was of Spanish origin and whereas poor Saddam was a swarthy Arab? The Big brother America loves to flirt with dictators of different nations and races. At any given time, they have been courting dictators in Vietnam, in Pakistan, in Nigeria, in Chile, in Peru and in Columbia. Both Pinochet and Saddam were patronised by America. They were armed and politically supported with American dollars.

The American foreign policy in the post second world-war period has been marked by altruism and economic factors. U.S.A is considered by many as the first bastion of democracy. America instead of championing democracy opts to nurture military dictatorship. Between India and Pakistan, the choice has always been of Pakistan, a country ruled by military dictators most of the time. The dictators all around the world have been rewarded for their unbounded loyalty to America with such largesse as arms, weapons, aircrafts and plenty of financial aid to prop up such regimes. America in return expects cheap oil, military bases and unlimited exploitation of mineral resources.

Some dictators at the end of their term are hounded out of the country and they seek safe asylum abroad. From Shah of Iran to Marcos of Philippines the story is same. Only a very few dictators either commit suicide or killed in an army coup. Some of them do die a natural death while asleep like Stalin or Pinochet. America can suddenly become vengeful, if the dictator becomes too independent. A dictator, who becomes disloyal ought to be punished. The American enemy number 1 Osama bin laden is a slippery customer difficult to catch. Saddam was hiding in Tikrit like a rat in a hole and was caught easily, because a close confidant of Saddam betrayed him for a few million dollars and U.S. citizenship to all the family members of this betrayer. He has found a safe heaven for himself in America. A defiant Saddam preferred to be hanged without a hood and departed from this world in the glare of T.V. lights. Immediately, this brief footage became an important news breakthrough for T.V. Channels. Undoubtedly, Saddam has millions of followers and admirers in his native Iraq. The war of revenge will go on for a few more years killing at least a few thousand American and British soldiers. They may even target innocent citizens of these countries. It is a difficult question to answer why a cruel dictator like Pinochet dies in bed of old age and why another dictator aged 69 must get hanged for similar crimes?

The long arm of Justice of America can definitely reach nooks and corners of South America. Both Pinochet and Franco are Spanish. Should we spare them because they are Europeans and Caucasians? If Idi Amin had not found political Asylum in Saudi Arabia, either Britain or America would have loved to see him hanged. What guarantee is there Iraq will not produce another lovable Islamic dictator, who may declare jihad on the west. Nobody ever found weapons of Mass destruction or biological weapons or chemical weapons in Iraq. Iran has been a difficult customer of America. But unfortunately, there is no single entity representing Iran like Saddam or Gaddafi. Iran conducts election once in five years and elects different leaders every time. If there were to be a dictator, worth hating America would have declared war on Iran. A democratically elected university professor Alande in Chile was brought down by America. Will Gaddafi be the next target of America?