Never has corruption dominated the public consciousness as obsessively as it does in today's India. That there are more offenders outside than inside jails has helped the democratisation of corruption, which has seeped down to the pores of economic activity and the grass roots of governance in day-to-day living.
Anna Hazare's clarion call became the timely, safety valve for mass frustrations. So desperate for the end, we willingly condoned the means. While the head had questions, the heart lent support.
Like in border dispute talks, where aggressive claims of both sides ultimately morph into a via media line of control, the current impasse has to lead to a consensus Lokpal Bill. While one side has felt the heat of public anger, the other side will know that the spontaneity and intensity of April cannot be replicated at will. Therein lies the best hope for Lokpal's birth.
These will help matters:
The Lokpal bill will be shaped by the collective will of the minority constituency of Indians who are glued on but not sufficiently clued in. This constituency wields disproportionate influence, since a national referendum is impractical. This jury-at -large can take an informed stand, if educated by neutral witnesses from civil society (defined, in brief as “Indians who are aware, concerned, non-partisan and well intentioned”) — experienced men of integrity such as Justice A. S. Verma who broke his silence. That will help balance emotion with rationale, romanticism with realism and lead to the birth of the Lokpal. Truth generally lies in the midst of conflicting claims. The alternative to a stillbirth will spell irreversible disillusionment for the millions who have invested their passion and hope in the Lokpal Bill, a perceived definitive in the midst of the amorphous fight against corruption. That will be tragic. The media have to bring the different voices together — a TV debate, and a tabular analysis of the differences and the arguments, in the print medium, for instance.
Black money is like tailpipe pollution — not always visible, but a criminal economic waste. When unfiltered human greed, ambition and competitiveness enter the economic value chain, it forms a heady fuel mix. It is like the adulterated high-octane in a combustion chamber with insufficient air intake. Discretionary powers and lack of transparency form the dark chambers that breed corruption. That is where the sins occur.
We need to focus on the causes and prevention of corruption, along with the welcome deterrent of assured retribution. We ensure national security not just through the fear of court martial, however swift that is. We built systems, processes and capabilities. The same level of uncompromising result-orientation is required to prevent corruption, which is nothing but breached security of national assets. In managing them, consultative decision-making and collective decision-making have to combine with collective responsibility/punishments. Committees cannot be allowed to become convenient clothes lines for prejudicial decision-making sans answerability. Consent through silence is nothing but connivance. In all the major swindles that have come to light in the last two years, in business organisations to mega sporting events, the connivance of silence, bought through minor shares in the booty (including the fashionable ‘consultancy' and other assignments), is a common thread.
The eruption of public revulsion against corruption provided a godsend (and lost) opportunity to take the fight to the root of corruption: the individual. Sadly, there was and is no national figure with the moral authority to synthesise the felt anger into a cleanser of minds, the fountainheads of corruption. Can disparate forums and movements like Ipaidabribe.com come together? But then, where is the unifying leadership?
Meanwhile, skyrocketing aspirations and aggressive competitiveness fuel corruption. Single-family-owned–skyscrapers mock at the poor and also spur them to seek deliverance from poverty, no matter how. Even ‘god-fearing' families now seek a son-in-law in a ‘lucrative' job. Elsewhere, 200/200 falls short of the cut-off mark for MBBS admissions, raising the prospects of some white money turning black!
Which enemy are we fighting?
(The writer is Chennai-based communicator and his email is: ttabraham@gmail.com)
