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.