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CORRUPTION has been eating into the vitals of our society since its very inception. In the past, it has been rising gradually but recently, it has assumed alarming proportions. Now, it is a heated topic of debate at all levels.

Efforts have been made in the past to eradicate it from our midst but no worthwhile breakthrough was visibly achieved. Causes of its dismal failure can be attributed to lack of sincerity on the part of our law-enforcing agencies. Half hearted and semi-baked efforts of the rulers have also been responsible for its failure.

Today, there is a general perception that those at the helm of affairs in Pakistan have started collecting around them the ill-reputed corrupt people. They are patronized so long as they serve the key interests of the Government in power. The corrupt elements know the weakness of their rulers and as such dabble in activities which eventually set the trend for entering into corrupt practices.

The present Government glibly talks of prescribing a merit-based system to check corruption”. But unfortunately, merit does not count much under the existing corrupt political system. In our case, it is the political opportunism which reigns supreme. Regrettably, one haven of many fantastic stories with regard to the formulation and consolidation of PML-Q. It is now being openly talked about that “careful and deliberate preparations” stretched over three years had given into the formation of this “blue-eyed” party.

It may, however, be mentioned here that corruption is not the sole prerogative of Pakistan. In underdeveloped countries, this is a wide spread malaise, so much so, that even the only superpower of the world, with all its loud claims of its respect for law and its complete adherence to democratic values, has shown blatant disregard for propriety, as cases of massive corruption were noticed during the Presidential elections of George W Bush. Contracts worth billions of dollars were doled out to “most deserving cases” even, without audit from liods. These acts of “generosity” have also been repeated in Iraq now.

There are various factors that primarily facilitate the corruption process, but the prime responsibility of promoting this business, revolves round failure of good governance. We feel that things can improve only when, merit is scrupulously observed, at the time of retirement, promotion and posting in the bureaucracy. Considerations other than merit seriously militate against this concept.

It is unfortunate that inefficient people, manage to attain high positions in life by dabbling in corrupt practices. Such people believe in making hay while the sun shines.

It will be pertinent to point out here that the good governance can be ensured by installing an independent judiciary, a conscious citizenry and above all a free Press. Viewed in this context, credit goes to the present government for guaranteeing substantial freedom of Press. It is due to this freedom, that some of the crimes of the bureaucratic set-up have come to light.

However, in the absence of an independent judiciary and a conscious citizenry, all claims of eradicating corruption have come to naught. It is sad to observe that the Government, hardly takes notice of the Press reports and brushes aside people’s grievances.

There is a general perception among people that low salaries generally lead to corruption. This may be partially true, but hard fact of life is that this facile argument is advanced by those who wish to do nothing or want to justify their failure to deliver goods.

It is almost an axiomatic truth that corruption generally increases in authoritarian system. Under dictatorship, corruption generally tends to grow, as people lose their control over their Government. In the pat, we may say that corruption was well under control and was limited only to lower-level. But with passage of time, things have drastically changed. Today, “king”, wearing gaudy “clothes” is seen “naked” everywhere and corruption has become a way of life. Corruption in the higher circles is more endemic, more intense and more pervasive.

With reference to the much-trumpeted process of accountability, we regret to say that this process primarily focuses on “sorting out” the political adversaries of the uncorrected bureaucrats. This partial process of accountability leads to cynicism and with it, the level of corruption is invariably raised.

President Musharraf is correct in saying that corruption at the highest level is unpardonable and as such the ‘big fish’ must be severely punished. However, he did not spell out as to who would bell the cat. Military rulers generally do not help create a democratic order. On the other hand, institutions are based on strong and eternal values. And unless the rulers uphold and practice such values, good governance is destined to remain a distant dream.

To reiterate, an honest, dedicated and sincere leadership is the only touchstone of eradicating corruption. For this, democratic dispensation is its pre-requisite”. Democracy tries to create ideal conditions in society and tries to steer the nation to progress. In case, people are vigilant and uphold the principles of democracy, it should not be difficult to achieve the desired goals.

The writer is a freelance columnist and analyst.