Course Title: Issues and Problems in Governance

Couse Code: PA- 4105

Submitted by, Submitted To,

Name: Zahid Ibn Hasan, Asif Abdullah, Bulbul Ahmed
Md Sohel Rana, Mahmudul Hasan Nishan,
Md Alamgir Hossain, Naznin Nahar. Assistant Professor,
Roll: 171901, 171902, 171904, 171905, Department of Publc
171906, 171907.
Administration,
Session: 2016-17

4th Year 1st semester

Pabna University Of Science
and Technology.

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 Content
Serial no Content name Page no

1 Abstract 3

2 Introduction 4

3 Definitions of corruption 5

4 The Causes of Corruption 5-6

5 Consequences of corruption 7-9

6 Remedies of Corruption 9-11

7 Concluding Remarks 11

8 References 12

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Abstract
Corruption is an old phenomenon which appears from the very beginning of the
civilization. More specifically, corruption came to the light after the birth of
government’s institutions. Corruption has two major dimensions; public sector
corruption and private sector corruption. The public sector corruption means,
“misuse of public office for private benefits”. This study put high emphasis on
public sectors corruption. The ultimate aim of this study is to identify the key
causes of corruption, effects of corruption in almost every aspect of society and
providing some resounding ways to forward.

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Introduction
Corruption is a complex social, political and economic phenomenon that affects all countries.
Corruption refers to the abuse of entrusted power for private gain. Corruption found
everywhere in the world the world whether it is developed countries or it is developing
countries. One of the greatest scholars of all time Kautilya says about that …
[The King] shall protect trade routes from harassment by countries, state officials, thieves and
frontier guards…… [and] frontier officers shall make good what is lost……..just as it is impossible
not to taste honey or poison that one may find at the tip of one’s tongue, so it is impossible for one
dealing with government funds not to taste, at least a little bit, of the king’s wealth. ─ ─ From the
treatise the Arthashasttra, by Kautilya (Chief Minister to the king in ancient India), circa 300 B. C.
── 150 A.D.
It varies in terms of volume. Developing countries are more corrupted than developed
countries. Some common causes of corruption are greed, nepotism, low wages of public
officers, lack of integrity, faulty socio-economic system, absence of political stability,
dictatorship and so on. Corruption strikes all aspects of society. It affects devastatingly and its
effects are interlinked. That is discussed in this study with examples. Finally, this study
provides some aesthetic remedies to reduce the volume of corruption.

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Definitions of corruption
 A much more difficult, scientific definition for the concept ‘corruption’ was developed
by profesor (emeritus) dr. Petrus van Duyne - "Corruption is an improbity or decay in
the decision-making process in which a decision-maker consents to deviate or demands
deviation from the criterion which should rule his or her decision-making, in exchange
for a reward or for the promise or expectation of a reward, while these motives
influencing his or her decision-making cannot be part of the justification of the
decision".

 “The violation of public duties by private interests when rules or norms objectively
define those two realms” (Chabal & Daloz: 1999)

 Oxford Dictionary defines corruption as - "Perversion or destruction of integrity in the

discharge of public duties by bribery or favor ".

 The World Bank defines corruption as - "the abuse of public office for private gains".

 According to Kamus Besar Bahasa Indonesia (KBBI) - "Misappropriation or misuse of

state funds (companies etc.) for personal gain or other person".

The Causes of Corruption:

Corruption occurs for a variety of reasons and has oftentimes no single identifiable cause. A
number of causes have been suggested, including: Poor administrative structures; weak
judicial, legislative, and regulatory frameworks; inadequate education; and cultural and social
value systems that encourage corruption. Other possible causes are inadequate civil servant’s
remuneration; too broad discretionary powers of civil servants and a lack of accountability,
monitoring and transparency. Additionally, it has been argued that planned economies, where
many prices are below market clearing levels, provide incentives to payoffs, as does the
presence of organized crime.
Corruption is often regarded as a major factor in the development of poverty, and that can be
true. Public employees who are working for low wages and not able to support their families,
for example, have a higher risk of corruption in the public sector. Another factor that may not
cause corruption but certainly encourages it is a low educational level that keeps the population
passive and ignorant of its rights as well as a lack of political will to fight corruption. Those
who resist corruption or use public office for private gain may find it more difficult to remain
honest if they are not protected. There are so many reasons behind corruption. Some of the
courses of corruption are mentioned below:
 Poor governance: Poor governance is the root cause of our country's problems. It fosters
a corrupt environment. There is no transparency or accountability of the government to the
public due to poor governance. Therefore, politicians, public and private employees are all
corrupt.
 Poverty: Around 50 percent of the people in our country live under poverty line. They are
unable to manage their basic needs. Honesty, morality, virtue etc. are meaningless to them.
They need two meals a day for them and their family. So they do not hesitate to adopt unfair
means or offer bribe to fulfill their needs.
 Unemployment: This is a vicious problem for Bangladesh. There are around 140 million
people in Bangladesh and most of them are unemployed. It is also not possible for the
government of a poor country like Bangladesh to create employment for all its peoples. The

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 demand for jobs is much greater than its availability. So people try to get a job by offering
bribe.
 Lack of patriotism: Patriotism is a divine virtue of human being. It is normal that every
citizen would love his/her motherland. A true patriot loves his country and cannot indulge
in activities like corruption. But in our country the number of patriotic people are
decreasing day by day and the number of corrupted people are increasing due to lack of
patriotism.
 Lack in rules of law: There are hundreds of laws in Bangladesh but the proper application
of law is rare. Also there are lots of ambiguous laws that need to be amended. Besides the
law enforcing agencies in Bangladesh is also corrupted. All these create an environment
for corruption and corruption gradually have its roof deep in the society.
 Political Unrest: Polytypical unrest is a common scenario of Bangladesh independence.
The political parties in our country want to go power by any means. When they are in
power, they indulge in corruption in favor of their party rank and files. When the opposition
parties go to power they also follow the same path and engage in corruption.
 Poor remuneration: The government servants are paid very poor salaries which is barely
enough to maintain their families. Although the price of essentials is going up every day
their salaries are not increased in proportion to the market price. Besides, there are no
arrangement for incentives for efficiency or performance. Failing to maintain their families
some of them indulge in unfair means. Of course there are a segment of the government
who are by nature corrupted.
 Greediness: People become very greedy when they enter in administration. They try to
collect money as much as they can. For this reason, corruption is being happening.
 Nepotism: Political leader who believe in his own interest rather than the public interest it
is the one of the major reason for corruption in our country.
 Low wages: The vast majorities of the workers in government part are paid low wages and
pay rates. Corruption higher when public salaries are relatively low.
 Absence of unity in public: There is no solidarity among people in our country for raise
their voice against corruption.
 Poor leadership: Lack of good leadership is responsible for corruption because Good
leader lead people towards development, advancement and development.
 Delaying system: Excessive red-tape in administration is responsible for corruption
because delaying system prevent working.
 Weakness of law implementation: when there is no strict punishment for corruption
people will continue to give and take bribe.
 Decline of personal ethical sensitivity: Lack of education and bad learning experiences
causes corruption in the organization.
Corrupt practices are not a new phenomenon, since the whole world is engulfed in corruption
which is the greatest threat to development. Corruption is a major problem for developing
country although it has been a burning question. Corruption is a disease that has become so
widespread in our society that it pervades all areas of public life. It not only threatens our
economic security; it also poses a threat to our national security.

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Consequences of corruption
“Corruption is killing us, not earthquakes”- Hurriyet (Turkish newspapers ) Headline

“Corruption is a global concern. Corruption is a crime that undermines economic development,

social cohesion, political stability and democratic progress of all countries and societies without
exception. It is inter alia a multi-trillion dollar global scandal geared by the global financial
and banking infrastructure that remains conducive to illicit transfers of corrupt money mainly
from the developing to the developed world. At national levels, corruption is a menace that
causes plunder of resources; destroys a level playing field in public contracting; distorts
competitive business and investment environment; and above all, erodes trust in government
and politics” (Iftekharuzzaman, 2016). The consequences of corruption affecting devastatingly
in a country’s overall sectors are epitomized in following;
 Wastage of resources “Corruption is a menace that causes wastage and plunder of
public resources; it undermines the prospect of building a merit-based society by
compromising a level playing field in various professions including public service,
business and even politics. It distorts competitive business and public contracting, and
damages investment environment” (Jamal, 2017).
 Increasing cost and expenditure “Corruption increases the cost of investment and
entrepreneurship. It lowers the quality and effectiveness of public expenditures; reduces
revenue collection and promotes rent-seeking. Moreover, Corruption has an in-built
bias against the poor, disadvantaged and low-income sections of the society. They are
directly affected by the increased cost of public services for bribery and limited or even
lack of access to services because of lack of capacity to pay bribe” (Jamal, 2017).
 Violation of human rights “Corruption is increasingly linked to violation of human
rights and breach of rule of law. Corruption kills innocent people as we have seen in
case of Rana Plaza and many more such tragedies in Bangladesh” (Jamal, 2017)..
 Poor service delivery Corruption causes underperformance in governance and
undermines the government's ability to deliver. It generates a sense of disempowerment
among people which in turn leads to accepting corruption as a way of life and causes
erosion of values and ethics (Jamal, 2017).
 Undermining the social cohesion, political stability and democratic progress.
“Corruption is a crime that undermines the social cohesion, political stability and
democratic progress. Corruption feeds into zero-sum game of politics especially when
office of politics and government are viewed as a mandate to enjoy personal benefit
and enrichment. It undermines the infrastructure of democratic accountability by
affecting proper functioning of institutions like parliament, judiciary, administration,
law enforcement agencies, election commission, anti-corruption commission, etc.,
which become instruments for monopolisation of political space. The state structure
can thus be exposed to kleptocratic capture. Corruption erodes trust of citizens in
leadership, public offices and institutions” (Jamal, 2017).
 Economic cost of corruption When infrastructure collapses due to the poor
construction by a less qualified contractor who got the contract through bribes, then it
is not only a waste of resources and loss of potential output of the economy, but also a
loss of invaluable human lives. Corruption is also a disincentive to those who genuinely
want to invest, but suffer from uncertainty over getting the necessary permissions. High

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 facilitation fees may become less cost-effective for many businesses and reduce their
competitiveness. An industry paying exorbitant "speed money" for a public service
would be in a less advantageous situation than the one which gets it done by paying the
regular price. A business paying existing interests for bank loans would struggle to
compete with a business that enjoys frequent interest waivers or has defaulted with the
bank. Such disincentives may discourage those who could add more to national output
in terms of job creation, innovation and productivity through investments.
 The social cost of corruption The social cost of corruption is also high and has a
distributional impact. If incompetent school teachers are employed at public schools
through bribes, the quality of education suffers. These students may fall behind in
accessing higher education and securing employment. This has a long-term implication
on the overall human capital situation and the welfare of future generations. When the
government cannot generate resources through taxation due to high tax evasion, there
is inadequate resources for social protection for the poor. Hence, it hampers inclusive
growth.
 The environmental costs of corruption The environmental costs of corruption are no
less important. When encroachers construct buildings by filling up rivers and lakes or
cutting forests illegally, the environmental damage caused is irreparable. When unfit
vehicles with high carbon emissions run on the road, getting away with paying bribes,
the cost of that pollution is human health. This increases government expenditure on
cleaning up the degraded environment. The pollution also reduces productivity and
prosperity.
 Poverty Banerjee and Duflo, two Nobel Prize winning economists, in their seminal
book, "Poor Economics", explore the connection between corruption and poverty. It is
widely-held belief that the single greatest cause of entrenched poverty is poor
governance and corruption.
 Illegal financial flow In Bangladesh, Corrupt individuals widely reported in the media
recently, like the procurement mafia, casino dons, pillow and kettle scamsters, land-
grabbing brothers from Faridpur, BSL leaders of Faridpur Zilla, corrupted government
officials transfer money regularly in developed countries like Canada, USA and
Switzerland i.e., The Begum Para in Toronto, Canada—an opulent neighbourhood
where Bangladeshi millionaires are known for buying and settling in luxurious
houses—is a prime example of how the powerful plunder public money while keeping
their own countrymen impoverished.
The effects of corruption are so pervasive and inter-linked that it difficult to
epitomize the devastating effects of corruption in some points. Widespread poverty, hunger,
lack of quality education, acute unemployment, mal administration, distress of people in
developing countries, low income, poor living standards, money laundering etc. are happened
due to corruption. It engulfs societies like cancer at every aspects of life. i.e., In Bangladesh
Corruption costs the country at least 2-3 percent of GDP. Two prominent definitions are
enough to understand the devastating effects of corruption. The definition are …….According
to World Bank, corruption is “the single greatest obstacle to economic and social development.
It undermines development by distorting the role of law and weakening the institutional
foundation on which economic growth depends.” The Transparency International take it as,
“... one of the greatest challenges of the contemporary world. It undermines good government,

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fundamentally distorts public policy, leads to the misallocation of resources, harms the private
sector and private sector development and particularly hurts the poor.

Remedies of Corruption
It is not possible to remove Corruption totally but it can be brought down to the minimum level.
It needs to be understood that corruption is more environmental than an administrative
problem. What we need is a well thought out, long term strategy. It has to be a radical operation
encompassing administrative, legal, social, economic and other changes. Some of the measures
to combat administrative corruption are outlined below:
 Postings and Transfers of Civil Servants according to Rules: Postings and transfers
of civil servants have an important impact in eliminating corruption. Normally it should
be done for the efficient administration and asper well settled rules. But it often happens
that these rules are not observed in practice. On the one hand there is too much political
interference. The rules regarding rotational transfers in the higher civil services must
be strictly observed. Civil servants who remain at a certain post for a longer time
develop vested interests and attachments which come in the way of their independent
functioning.
 Assets Statements: It should be obligatory for ministers, M.Ps and all officials to
declare the assets owned by them. These should be printed officially and made available
to everyone. Any falsification of these statements should be declared a punishable
offence involving imprisonment. Ministersshould be required to go further. They
should list all contracts entered into by them. The same rule should apply to government
officials and members of the judiciary also.
 Investigating Agencies to have More Teeth and Made Autonomous: While the
government has set up many agencies like Anti-Corruption commission, Detective
Branch, Police Bureau Investigation, National Security intelligence, DGFI yet most of
these agencies lack of teeth. Also, most of them lack their own investigating machinery
to enquiry into the alleged acts of corruption. Moreover, the permission of the
government is required in a majority of the cases to initiate action against senior
officers. These type of constraints have been a major hindrance in combating
corruption. The various agencies created by the government should be given more teeth,
made more independent and appointments to these august bodies should be based only
on the criterion of efficiency.
 Making Administration More Accountable: Bangladesh is a parliamentary
democracy which works on the principle of ministerial responsibility. The civil servant
is responsible to the minister who in turn is responsible to the parliament, which in turn
is accountable to the people. However, the principle of the accountability is not working
in the desired manner. In Bangladesh decisions are taken at various levels of
administration where use of discretionary power may be involved. It is difficult for
Parliament to exercise control over such a large bureaucracy. The judiciary is bogged
down by heaps of mounting arrears of cases. The result is general lack of accountability
in administration. Accountability is sadly but surely perishing at all levels. Therefore
what is required is to enforce the principle of accountability at all levels.
 Administrative procedures should be simplified and delays eliminated:
Administrative delay is one of the causes of corruption. Therefore to reduce or control

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 corruption it is necessary to eliminate such delays, Office procedures should be
simplified. Instead of the present system in which a file takes rounds of several offices,
before a decision is taken, a new pattern of decision-making ought to be evolved. It is
particularly necessary where public dealings are involved. This will reduce delays and
save the public from harassment. Official forms should be brief and simple which any
ordinary citizen can understand. Information technology should be harnessed
effectively to reduce the delays and simplify administrative procedures.
 Separate courts for corruption cases: An effective way to curb corruption is that the
guilty must be punished quickly to have deterrent effect on others. Since it is not
practicable through the present judicial setup, separate courts should be created to deal
exclusively with the corruption cases. That will hasten the process of disposal of cases.
 A strong Civil Society: We need a strong civil society that takes the initiative instead
of depending helplessly on politicians and officials. A strong civil society is full of
groups that band together for social goals. It brings pressure to bear against the corrupt.
We have to create such group who will be intolerant of corruption and system
debasement.
 Ombudsman: It is an effective mechanism to curb corruption. Though this system lies
in our constitution but our government is failed to create this system. Morally our
politicians are not strong that’s why they avoid this type of mechanism. A strong
political will is needed in this regard. Then it will be effective to eliminate the
corruption from the nation.
 Strict Rules and Regulations: Government should frame strict and stringent anti-
corruption laws. Severe punishments and penalties should be imposed on corrupt
people. The justice and proceedings should not be delayed. Immediate action should be
taken against corrupt people. The punishment should act as a good lesson for other
corrupt people.
 Freedom of press: it is needed to ensure freedom of press and speech of the journalists.
The Government must not create obstacle by formulating illegal controlling rules.
Media has wider coverage and impact. It should frequently expose the cases of
corruption. It should educate people against corruption on regular basis. Journalists and
editors should give complete information about the issues related to corruption in their
newspapers. Reporters should give more importance to the news and information on
corruption, they should report corruption cases immediately.
 Ensuring Proper Appointment and selection process: Many people compete for
government jobs, and in the process, there is corruption happening in selecting
candidates for the posts. So there should be an effort to promote transparency in the
selection criteria and any misconduct from this should be punishable. Selection of
students, managers, officers and executives should only be based on merit. It is the
responsibility of candidates and parents to critically examine the selection and
appointment procedures. They should report irregularities to the higher authorities
without delay.
 Ethical improvement: First and foremost is that, a person with moral ethics will not
indulge in corruption. Despite a rampant corruption around, people might have come
across a few people who are honest. Even if their colleagues accept bribes, they restrain
from it out of their personal ethics. This is due to their belief in god, parents’ teachings,
love for society, etc. This is the easiest and human friendly way to control corruption

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 and also provide better services. To encourage such people, even the governments
should recognize them with some awards.
 Give a better salary in Govt jobs: Many employees in government positions receive
a low wage like clerks, office staff, etc. Hence they expect to make money through
bribery. Thus, the public officials try to delay the work for so long that the client is fed
up and opts for bribery for progress in the work. So the low salary is one of the reasons
for corruption. To curb this, their salaries should be raised periodically.
 Installment of CCTV Cameras: In every ATM, there is a camera to keep a watch on
the public taking their cash. Then why not government offices have cameras to have a
watch on employee performance. Even many employees openly take the bribe in the
presence of ordinary men. This public bribery is due to the confidence that the public
wants their work more than the amount they pay to them as bribes.
 Responsible citizen: Every citizen should strive hard to eradicate corruption. People
of our country should report cases of corruption to vigilance department immediately
without delay. They should follow up the cases of corruption. Since, merely reporting
the evil practice is not sufficient for its complete eradication.
 Loyalty and patriotism: Every citizen of Bangladesh should become patriotic in true
sense. He should give priority and preference to the development of his nation. He
should always remain loyal to their beautiful culture, ethics and country. Social
workers, political leaders, media and teachers should inculcate true patriotism in the
citizens.

Concluding Remarks
Corruptions can eat a nation’s vital. Corruption erodes trust, weakens democracy, hampers
economic development and further exacerbates inequality, poverty, social division and the
environmental crisis. Corruption undermines democratic institutions, slows economic
development and contributes to governmental instability. For the sake of taking the country
from such situation to higher levels of development, a country not only needs to do many things
but also need to undo several things. Corruption and irregularities at different levels of
administration need to be done away with on an urgent basis because these vices retard a
country’s development pace and earn bad name for the country and its people. A strategic plan
should be taken to uproot corruption from the public sectors.

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References
 Enste, Dominik, Heldman, Christina. (2017). Causes and consequences of corruption:
An overview of empirical results. Report No/ Series; IW, 2/2017
 Rahman, Mizanur,Dr, November,(2007),Human Right and Corruption, Palal
Prokashoni,Aziz Market,Shahbag,Dhaka.
 Dr Md.Johurul Islam , Human Rights and Corruption, Article on Allavating
Corruption in Bangladesh : An Agenda for Good Governance, Published in 2007,
Published By ELCOP
 R.Madhavi. (8 february, 2021). Remedies to Fight Corruption. Retrieved from,
https://mcqbooks.com/remedies-to-fight-corruption/
 Nr. Ranga. (5 june, 2021). How to stop corruption. Prevention and Eradication.
Retrieved from, https://www.mindcontroversy.com/how-to-stop-corruption-
eradication/
 Transparency International. (10 March, 2021). How to stop corruption: key Ingredients.
Retrieved from, https://www.transparency.org/en/news/how-to-stop-corruption-5-key-
ingredients
 Iftekharuzzaman, (2016, December 9) Corruption control–is it feasible or a fantasy?
The Daily Star p.8
 Jamal E. O., (2017, December 9) Corruption is anti-development. The Daly Star
Retrieved from https://www.thedailystar.net/opinion/interviews/corruption-anti-
development-1502296

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