ACCORDING to the Corruption Perceptions Index compiled by Transparency International, Pakistan is the 34th most corrupt country out of 178 evaluated, slipping eight places from its previous ranking, said the Dawn in an editorial published Thursday. Excerpts: Tales of corruption are rampant, and rampant corruption is visible to whoever is able to look around the corridors of power. Government leaders, while occasionally acknowledging that corruption exists, have done nothing to address the problem in a meaningful way. The government likes to trumpet the fact that it has handed over chairmanship of the Public Accounts Committee to the leader of the opposition in the National Assembly, but is silent on the creation of the much-promised National Accountability Commission and has done little to promote adherence to rules set out by the Public Procurement Regulatory Authority. No debate on corruption in Pakistan can be complete without two points. One, from the earliest days of this country, corruption has been used as a stick to beat politicians with – and as a reason to justify extra-constitutional interventions. Second, corruption of all hues, not just political corruption, must be acknowledged. Few question the institutional corruption of the security forces, which arrogate to themselves staggering privileges. The judiciary high and low is broken and rife with tales of corruption. The same goes for the state machinery involved in service delivery and for the police forces. Yes, politicians have a higher duty to abide by the law, but many others have taken public oaths they violate on a regular basis. __
