Daily Times

Last week’s article showcased the success of recent actions by the state in transmuting corruption from the megalomania of the corrupt to the derision of the masses. Undoubtedly, rumours about the aggrandisement of this noble operation beyond its current geographic limits are welcomed and cheered on by all and sundry, except obviously by those within its crosshairs. After years, the razzmatazz and allure of corruption is perhaps finally being obfuscated in Pakistan and there is hope that the risk of comeuppance may well convince the talented to avoid this web of graft and fraudulency. Elimination of corruption, it was pointed out, was necessary not only because of the obvious fallout of taxpayers’ money being looted but also because of the adverse impact on economic growth and income inequality. With the eradication, as far as possible, of this despicable means of doubling money, there is a high probability that investment may finally be directed towards productive ventures that supplement employment opportunities in the country.
However, the nation, agog with expectations of a bright future, was also reminded that Pakistan’s history is replete with spasmodic efforts at reforms and alleviating corruption, which all eventually resulted in naught. Even this time around, the current enterprise has the imprimatur of an authority with a finite term, which begs the question: what thereafter? There is a real probability that if this current venture remains unsuccessful in meeting the prime objective of showcasing corruption as a punishable act for all times to come, the fallback will be severe with an inexorable rise in corruption.
And while a staunch believer of a one man rule system, which does not in any manner suggest an ideological fancy with martial law, clearly there needs to be a system of control and checks to combat democracy on all and every front. Arguably, the first guard against corruption is identifying the corrupt and hopefully accountability follows. And to identify the corrupt, calling INGO.
Of late, the appellation INGO, which stands for International Non-Governmental Organisation, invokes feelings of distrust and misgivings. There can be no debate over scrutinising foreign operations and taking enemies of the state to task; war is a serious business and world history affirms that nations at war have been far more aggressive in monitoring aliens. On the other hand, there is also a contrarian argument that certain INGOs have played a significant part in the development and protection of the have-nots of society.
Taking the good with the bad, the choice of INGO over an NGO is because the latter is much more susceptible to parlous domestic pressure and fear of unwarranted caustic retribution from the powerful. Arguably, the ‘independent and free media’ is a sobriquet that journalism in Pakistan hardly deserves; billions of rupees in black money have the wherewithal to comprise any system beset with decrepitude as well as the most righteous of mankind. It is indeed remarkably fortunate that the nation continues to be blessed with individuals impervious to the lure of the dark side but they are a few and far between, and with time their number continues to diminish. In addition to a superior capacity to withstand pressure, an INGO is likely to have better prospects of attracting international donor funding compared with an NGO.
Nonetheless, the choice between an INGO and NGO is not a deal breaker; albeit the unflinching support of two key pillars of government, the judiciary and what is referred to in normal parlance as the establishment, will be imperative. The optimum option would be active representation of the two pillars on the board of governors of the concerned INGO, read interchangeably with NGO, responsible for the corruption project.
The fight against corruption starts with unmasking politicians in bed with lobbyists and lobbies; the interests of the latter, in any form or guise, will generally be detrimental to the interest of Pakistan. Recall, the corruptor and corrupted are concomitant. Creating awareness amongst voters, the ultimate authority charged with accountability in a democracy is the obvious next step, pursuant to identification of any unconstitutional activity. The scope and dimensions of any activity to create awareness amongst the voting masses in every constituency will require significant resources and superlative management systems. In order to ensure a level playing field, the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) might even need to sanction discounted rates for this awareness campaign.
A simultaneous activity will be drafting, propagating and sponsoring amendments in legislation that provide greater access to information and ensure transparency of decision making in the public sector, especially those relating to obligating the state financially or vesting of national assets in any manner. The wheel need not be reinvented, cutting and pasting of adaptable legislation of western democracies might be the best course of action.
The argument that the Public Procurement Regulatory Authority (PPRA) already does that, gets clouded when confronted by the counter argument that if that was the case, corruption should be, logically, declining in the country. Major to minor infrastructure projects in the country end up being subjected to controversy and allegations of kick backs, resulting in a never ending unproductive debate. Would it not be preferable for an independent entity to simulate the cost of projects, at inception, and post anomalies on a web page as well as decimating key findings to the media? And should an INGO spearhead such an initiative, multilateral agencies by default would be unable to ignore their conclusions. Has it not always been perplexing how and why fighting corruption was never a condition insisted upon by the IMF? The only rational answer is that corruption in developing countries suits the international financial industry for some reason!
Notwithstanding, there also needs to be legislation that requires individuals vying for public office to disclose their assets, with evidence and trail, for public scrutiny. And even in this case information is simply not enough; an analysis to confirm whether or not the quality of living is commensurate with income, or that historic income reconciles with current wealth, is the ultimate goal. In cases where beneficial sources are offered as an excuse, the income of those sources needs also to be brought into the ambit of scrutiny with all discrepancies being uploaded on a website.
Obviously, the costing of projects and analysis of personal wealth require costly technical resources for which the INGO will need to solicit requisite funding but it is doable and there are actually INGOs in the global market that are in the business of fighting corruption. The model can be replicated in Pakistan and one hopes that there are sufficient well-to-do Pakistanis willing to bankroll such an endeavour. Health, education and facilities for the poor are indeed noble philanthropic ventures but unless corruption is controlled even the former will get infected by the latter. Dear readers, floating an idea is the maximum limit of a column; praying for its success is limitless.

The writer is a chartered accountant based in Islamabad. He can be reached at syed.bakhtiyarkazmi@gmail.com and on twitter @leaccountant