How to prevent political corruption - Stephanie Honchell Smith

537,407 views ・ 2024-04-11

TED-Ed


Please double-click on the English subtitles below to play the video.

00:06
On October 23, 2015, Mcebisi Jonas, South Africa’s deputy finance minister,
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faced a harrowing, yet enticing, decision.
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He had thought he was attending a normal business meeting
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but ended up in the home of the powerful Gupta family,
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sitting with the Gupta brothers and the president, Jacob Zuma’s, son.
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Jonas was offered a promotion and $45 million.
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In return, he would be expected to use his position
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to advance the Gupta’s many business interests.
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This included firing officials who opposed the construction
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of new power plants,
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which were slated to run on fuel from Gupta-owned mines.
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The deal was simple— but would Jonas accept?
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This kind of corruption in politics is nothing new.
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It plagued the ancient world—
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the “Arthasastra,” an Indian political treatise
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that dates back to the 3rd century BCE,
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lists 40 types of embezzlement alone.
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So, what exactly is corruption, and what can we do to combat it?
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Corruption is often defined as a misuse of a position of power for personal gain.
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For example, this could be a city clerk accepting bribes
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in exchange for issuing permits;
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or a mayor appointing a campaign donor to an influential position.
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But corruption isn’t limited to the political sphere;
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it can happen in schools, sports, businesses, or religious institutions.
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In ancient Greece, the power-hungry Alcmaeonid family
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notoriously bribed the priestesses at Delphi to deliver false prophecies,
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like telling the Spartans they should invade Athens.
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It may seem like all corruption is driven by greed,
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but individual motives are often complex.
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There can be economic drivers,
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like family pressure on an underpaid civil servant
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who exaggerates his expenses to get more money back.
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This might not seem like a big problem, but corruption can snowball.
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If anti-corruption laws aren’t enforced,
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or if loopholes are continuously exploited,
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a larger culture of corruption can emerge.
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For example, in 2009, numerous British MPs were exposed
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for using taxpayer money to cover personal expenses,
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from home renovations to luxury purchases, and even having a moat cleaned.
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And corruption isn't always directly about money.
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In 2016, a Department of Justice investigation found widespread patterns
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of unconstitutional policing, abuse, and corruption
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within the Baltimore Police Department.
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In just one elite task force, eight officers were convicted of crimes,
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including planting evidence and robbing citizens during traffic stops.
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Corruption like this causes people to lose faith in government
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and can deplete much needed resources.
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The more taxpayer money that goes into people’s pockets,
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the less there is to spend on services that benefit the community—
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like repairing roads, building schools, or providing healthcare.
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In the case of South Africa,
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the Gupta family plundered billions of dollars from the country’s funds
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through their wide-ranging corruption schemes,
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devastating the nation's economy.
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In Baltimore, the police department cost taxpayers more than $22 million
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in court settlements and gravely eroded public trust.
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So, how can we prevent corruption?
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While it’s important that laws set a high price for corrupt behavior,
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punishment is only one piece of the puzzle.
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Transparency in terms of budget and paper trails
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and support for freedom of the press are hugely important.
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In Botswana, the government has built public trust
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through their ongoing commitment to respond to corruption
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openly, quickly, and decisively.
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In Denmark, government ministers must publish monthly reports
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cataloging their spending on entertainment,
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official travel, and any gifts they’ve received.
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As citizens, we can vote out those who engage in corruption
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and question officials who push back against transparency measures.
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And we can stand up against corruption when we see it.
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In South Africa, Jonas refused the Guptas’ offer,
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and despite threats against his life, spoke out,
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exposing a sprawling web of corruption that toppled Zuma’s regime,
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and sent the Gupta family into exile.
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But it wasn’t just Jonas’ revelation that mattered.
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Once the scale of corruption was unearthed,
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everyday South Africans took to the streets,
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insisting that “Zuma must fall.”
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By using our civic voices,
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we can fight back to ensure that tax dollars don’t line pockets,
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but instead benefit everyone.
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