Birth and Growth of Bribery & Corruption
in Sri Lanka and the Third World
By Engr. Kanthar Balanathan
DipEE (UK),
GradCert (RelEng-Monash), DipBus&Adm (Finance-Massey), C.Eng., MIEE,
Former
Director of Power Engineering Solutions Pty Ltd, Consulting Electrical
Engineers
Leading
Engineer of the World 2006, UK Authority Award
1. Introduction
Having pursued an engineering career and lived in various multicultural
countries, my ambition was to research the birth and growth of bribery and
corruption in the third and developing countries and what limits the economic
growth of countries. My experience proved that Nigeria is the worst country as
far as bribery and corruption and Zimbabwe was better in the African
continent which has a much lower percentage of bribery and corruption which was
a result of Mr. Robert Mugabe was forceful in limiting bribery and corruption
in the society.
I am proud to state that the English
(British) and the European ethos is the best form of culture in the world.
Bribery and Corruption: embraced exercises and run-throughs by humans
based on their culture and customary practices from childhood.
Corruption is a basic oddity of third world underdeveloped and
uncivilised humans which clinched in their mind with their culture, and the
corruption transforms into various dimensions as they mature. English
ethos is the best form of culture in the world along with the related European
race civilisation. The reason for this presumption is the reasoning for
every action by the said party. In the English and European cultures, the
parents teach their children to act on the reasoning process
before they take due action. Therefore, from childhood, children practice
thinking of a reasoning process before they decide to act. Even before they
want to enjoy a piece of cake or food the children reason out whether the item
is good for them. This culture has been inflicted into the minds of the
English/European minds from childhood.
As per Newton's theory: For every action, there is an equal and
opposite reaction. This has to be analysed and practised. However, for humans,
the action could lead to a reaction in various dimensions. This needs to be
understood and digested.
2.
Culture
and Cultural Growth of Behaviour
Cultural Influences on
Child Development: - (Ref: https://online.maryville.edu/blog/cultural-influences-on-child-development/
Quote from the above article: Cultural background gives children a sense of who they are. The unique
cultural influences children respond to from birth, including customs and
beliefs around food, artistic expression, language, and religion, affect the
way they develop emotionally, socially, physically, and linguistically.
The author wishes to add that child
until they are 18 or over, should be guided by their parents to control and
regulate their minds and thoughts to elude and escape from clinging to bribery and corrupt
actions. If one is addicted to an action or practice, then they are governed by
those actions which may lead to corrupt performances. The author wishes to give
some examples with no soreness to people. In the third world, children are not
guided by principles for their actions. Children engage in telling lies being
afraid of punishment. Even the young ones may engage in deceitful and engage in
indecorous actions which are illegal, however, not let their parents or the
system know of the faults. This practice may grow into their workplace. In the
English and European cultures, the young ones are taught and told to reason before
making their decision.
In some cases, the young ones are
bribed to study, and do their homework, which they assume is a normal practice.
These practices migrate into the workplace where the person may think that he
needs an additional gift (bribery collateral) to perform the function
effectively, efficiently, and quickly.
The author wishes to point out that
since childhood if the person is not guided but controlled culturally, then
culture takes control of the person.
This is the main reason for the
difference in the practice between English and European people and the third
world people.
3.
What
is “Reasoning”?
The reasoning is the ability to assess thoughts,
concepts, issues, thingamajigs on logic-based information when deciding or
solving a problem. It is a fantastic act a process for humans.
Quote:
Four types of reasoning will be our focus here: deductive reasoning, inductive reasoning, abductive reasoning, and
reasoning by analogy. One way of distinguishing
between these is by looking at how they use cases, rules, and results.
Before acting or deciding, one should think about whether he is doing
the right act as per human and legal norms. If humans practice as above, then
the system would free itself from bribery and corruption.
While it is assumed that 99% of the English and Europeans do reason out
before every act, the third-world people take control by their position in the
office. Most time the decisions are dictatorial. However, with the recent
migration influx of Africans and Asians into the English and Europe it may have
been diluted and the system could have been directed to be corrupt.
Quote: Ricardo Hausmann is the former director of the Centre for
International Development currently leading the Centre for International
Development for Growth lab and is a professor of the practice of Economic
development. Details can be found at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ricardo_Hausmann. Web site: https://www.ricardohausmann.com/. Readers are welcome to visit the Professor's website and read his
articles.
What is the Hausmann theory?
Quote: Ricardo Hausmann (Harvard University) and Cesar Hidalgo (MIT)
developed the economic Complexity and Product space theory, which is based on
their findings that the cumulative amount of
knowledge in a country is central to the overall economic development of that
country.
What is a simple definition of culture?
Quote: Culture can be defined as all the ways of life including arts, beliefs and institutions of a
population that are passed down from generation to generation. Culture has been called "the way of life for an entire
society." As such, it includes codes of manners, dress, language,
religion, rituals, and art.
The author would like to give some examples
of the weakness in our society in Sri Lanka among the Tamil races.
The bride’s parents have to give the following as dowry to the
bridegroom, a doctor.
House,
Car, One million cash. For an engineer a little less money.
Every bridegroom gets a dowry. How is it possible for a person (father)
to earn such funds during his working career?
An office worker expects bribes to get work done to the public. E.g., the
issue of driving licences. Hence to earn money for their children the father
has to get a bribe.
In every department, council, hospital, and workplace the system is
corrupt. The police force is worse in SL and India.
4.
Sri
Lankan Politics
The worst form of democracy prevails in the third world. Democracy is
defined but not practised. During the election, every candidate gives
collateral for a vote amounting to millions. After the election, he focuses on
regaining his spent funds for the next election. He cannot do that from his
salary. The politician, therefore, is engrossed in bribery and corruption to
give his service to the people. The recouping will not be in thousands, but
millions.
In recent years the world would have read the Sri Lankan bankrupt
situation where the country could not supply people with their basic needs. The
foreign reserve was driven to zero and the country had to beg the IMF for a
loan. SL begged foreign countries for loans.
The LTTE group workers ripped off funds
collected and vanished into thin air. Even now they attempt to collect money
and foreign countries should be vigorous to punish these groups. A girl from
Switzerland has impersonated as if she is the daughter (Dwaraka) of the former
leader Vellupillai Prabakaran and appealed for help and that she would come to
help the Tamils in Sri Lanka.
Investigative journalists have found out that she entered Swizz illegally
through Malaysia and has married twice with two kids. Switzerland is a country
that helps foreigners to live peacefully, and the Tamils in Switzerland are
engaged in illegal, unlawful, and illegitimate activities. Some also work on
smuggling people into Switzerland illegally and are engaged in causing turmoil
in Sri Lanka. The federal police should investigate and arrest the girl
who impersonated Dwaraka who is dead and gone. The Federal Police also should
make sure that Tamils in Swizz behave like normal people and live under the
laws of Switzerland.
The politicians in SL do not know their obligation to society.
The current President Mr Ranil Wickremasinghe and the CB Governor Dr
Nandalal Weerasinghe have performed excellent moves to bring back the system to
a durable, stable mode. However, illiterate politicians should give their
support. The writer judges that the entire parliament of SL is full of
illiterate corrupt politicians. From 2005 to 2022 Sri Lanka was governed by
corrupt politicians and the country was driven to bankruptcy.
This is where culture, customary practices, and education reinforce the
people for a good governing system.
