GIVING a gift to show appreciation is the norm in business relationships. However, a gift may be a deadly poison that has the potential to destroy a country and civilisation.
This is true in the case of a person in authority who receives a gift for doing something that is against what has been entrusted to him.
Five Roman classic poisons recorded in history are nightshade (berries from Atropa Belladonna), hemlock, strychnine, curare, and arsenic. In the post-modern era, poisonous plants, such as opium, mandragora, henbane, aconite, cannabis sativa and mushrooms have been synthetically modified into a mix of venomous powder, liquid or gas.
Throughout history, plants have been used to kill people instantly or slowly. Corruption, dishonesty, fraud, bribery, breach of trust and misuse of power, too, are now synthesised in a complicated structure.
When selfish ambition exists, there will be disorder and every vile practice. A public service should not extort money from anyone by threats or false accusation or malpractice. Once an authority is motivated by greed, it will be infected and becomes difficult to cure. Some remedies have proved meaningless due to the huge damage done to the “nervous system” of good governance.
Hence, prevention is always better than cure. Furthermore, breach of trust is against any religion. In Islam, Prophet Muhammad had said breach of trust is one of the signs of a hypocrite. Receiving a bribe is condemned in the Quran in many verses. The authority who misuses power is a “devil in disguise”. The Bible states: “Whoever is greedy for unjust gain troubles his own household, but he who hates bribes will live” (Proverbs 15: 27).
Unfortunately, there are some who abuse religion to legalise their deeds. They are slaves of corruption. It is shameful when a high-ranking government official is suspected of corruption as it can spread and his subordinates would follow suit. So before the practice becomes cancerous, it must be stopped.
History has shown that nations with corrupt leaders can easily be brought down. Data on corruption suggest that corruption has been a persistent feature in human societies over the centuries. Although the precise measure of corruption is difficult to ascertain, there is a clear correlation between perception and behaviour. Data from perception surveys by the Transparency International-Corruption Perception Index, show that corruption correlates with human development. Studies also show that education and the family environment are elements in curbing corruption. Countering this menace demands greater and holistic effort.
Corruption is a curse to a civilisation. Human civilisation is built on justice, trust and truth. The duty to protect these noble virtues must be preserved at all costs. For corruption to be eradicated, enforcement needs to stepped up. We also need people to speak out against the practice and not stay silent.
Position and power are not privileges but they are a trust that needs to be exercised responsibly with just cause. The year 2018 and the first half of this year have revealed many corruption cases for us to reflect and ponder upon. Business associations and chambers of commerce must be alert in the agenda against corruption. Both the receiver and giver must be brought to book. Giving a gift or cash to officials is not a business norm but a crime.
A collective struggle is crucial especially among authorities, religious bodies and business allies in this fight against corruption. A mechanism should be developed to detect and measure mismanagement or misappropriation in government departments.
We need to count the seeds planted, not the crop harvested. Considering the severity of the damage done by corruption, a mass and fast cleansing of every aspect should be the concern of every individual be it in business, private, or public service.
The writer is a Fellow at the Centre for the Study of Syariah, Law & Politics, Institute of Islamic Understanding Malaysia.