Political Corruption

Introduction

Corruption is a complex and broad topic, but this study considers corruption primarily from an ethical perspective, with a particular emphasis on public sector corruption as it affects the means and ends of international development. Although we focus on developing countries and those in transition, clearly many of the same abusive violations of public trust for personal gain occur in developed countries as well. Indeed, the history of colonialism and the current global reach of corporations form part of the context of corruption that may be traced to developed nations.

In a classic sense of political thought corruption was the authoritarian abuse of power, extending even to tyranny(Klitgaard 55). Today that connection is, as we shall see, still dimly present in the dominant political discourse.The relationship between corruption and politics is much deeper than we would like to think and politicians willing to admit. First, we must not forget that corruption is an important means of political influence apparent advantages over the pure persuasion, on the one hand, and coercion by the other .

Political corruption can be defined as behavior or conduct of government officials, whether elected or appointed, which goes against social norms and legal terms is to take public office for private gain Legitimate or not, the public purse. Thus, an officer or member who, with his official duties, retire (whether for himself or his family) by providing direct benefits to the family business contracts, contrary to social norms and, more , legal standards. These standards may change. Political corruption exists in various forms. Some behaviors are almost universally regarded as corruption and sentenced(Johnston 435). Others are frequently regarded as corruption, but policy makers or political opinion may differ as to their ethics. Finally, there are behaviors that can be considered a form of corruption by many people, but are largely tolerated. Some argue that the behavior of this type are not really corruption in itself and can sometimes be socially acceptable, though not encouraged. Although they are often considered questionable ethically, they are too difficult to eradicate. We see that there are different degrees of corruption(Heidenheimer 532).

The Conflict Of Interest , a form of political corruption, is increasingly the subject of universal condemnation. Although corruption is a form of conflict of interest, the term refers to corruption arising from a conflict between the actions of a public office holder and the public interest. The result of holding financial interests that could benefit from making an official decision or vote, or to obtain employment in the private sector, from a company with which it has already done business as official, are examples. Some forms of conflicts of interest are illegal in Newfoundland (since 1973), New Brunswick (since 1978), Manitoba (since 1986) and Alberta (since 1991). In other instances, though not illegal, conflict of interest may nevertheless violate certain guidelines and be subject to sanctions such as dismissal or temporary suspension. However, these guidelines have no force of law and their application depends mostly on the goodwill and equity of government and the ...