Would you be willing to pay a bribe if the circumstances demand it ?
By kiran8
@kiran8 (15348)
Mangalore, India
April 10, 2010 1:50am CST
Just imagine that you are building a house and you are all set with your side of preparations like collecting the raw materials , making arrangement for finace, making time to oversee the construction, and hiring the workers etc; etc; but, the permission to build is being denied by the government authorities on flimsy grounds .And the excuse given is that there are too many applications to process and the officer concerned says that you will have to wait for 3 months or more before your application comes for review and some more time after that while they take up your case etc;.
In the mean time , he tells you that he is willing to review and grant you permission next week itself if you paid him a certain amount of money since he too has some difficulties and is badly in need of some money...How would you react to this? would you pay him and get your job done? or rather wait for 3 months or more to get the permission which may or may not be obtained easily...
This is how corruption begins and we willingly or unwillingly take part in it thereby endorsing it.I have heard one of my friends say that it is better to have a corrupt officer at the helm of things because then at least you are sure that your work is going to be done once you pay him a bribe...
Friends what do you all think about this ? is it right? can we as individuals fight the system or is it easier and more practical to go along with it?
1 person likes this
3 responses
@tutul0045 (2630)
• India
11 Apr 10
Hi,
Hmm.. i work in highly corrupt corporate market and i assure u one thing nothing moves without bribe in India and in many other countries. U know the sea ports there is valuation for every single work done there. U will be surprised to know that right from the peon to the so called "babus" every one have their rates fixed.
To move a file form one cabinet to another has a rate and if u want to do work u have to pay it. Its as simple as that. No two ways about it.
You are talking about constructing a building.. well the builder himself will ask for black money which is the money without any record. So its no less than a bribe.
And iam sure it has its own + and - The thing is for doing business u have to be cunning. When there is too many formalities u may give up which is even worse.
So instead you get your work done and add all these costs while u r making yr budget. There are different ways to look at it. It differs from person to person.
Cheers,
Tutul
@kiran8 (15348)
• Mangalore, India
11 Apr 10
Hi tutu, We all know this happens , but it makes you quite disillusioned to think that there probably is no hope for a change for the better any time in the near future. I guess we human beings, as we grow up tend to imbibe everything negative including corrupt practices...of course as you say it does differ in degrees from person to person
@tutul0045 (2630)
• India
11 Apr 10
Hi,
I guess u missed a point of mine here. What iam trying to say is not always its a bad thing. Of course morally u may feel that well i have committed a sin but in reality it has its own benefits.
The major benefit as i see is that the money rotating in the market which is so very important. A very fine example i can give is the recession in somany western countries. They are very strict on papers and most of things are in white and they avoid cash transactions. Even if u have to buy vegetables u have to buy through credit cards which means government is able to track all your transactions.
But in India its not the same, u can get away in so many things and as u know that even if we pay our taxes honestly they dont fall into right places.
Cheers,
Tutul
@tutul0045 (2630)
• India
12 Apr 10
Hey again,
Well i can understand what u r trying to say here. I was exposed to my family business when i was around 16 or 17 and at that age i have seen things which are quite unmentionable.
I know what u learn from schools , your parents, about the good and the bad or the right and wrong has very little scope in todays corrupt world. In reality its the power and how street smart u are actually.
I remember once a business colleague telling me that everything in this world can be buyed or is on on sale, u just need to know the right price and the trick to negotiate.
God save the world the way its going!
Cheers,
Tutul
@magtibaygom (4856)
• Philippines
19 Sep 10
I see, you are from India. We used to have that kind of problem here in the Philippines. Corruption was eating our society like a dreaded cancer.
We used to have a president (President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo) who was known for being the leader of corruption. But the people got fed up by it and wanted change. We voted a new president, President Noynoy Aquino who is an upright man. And after that, wind of change is now blowing!
With the aid of hi-tech gadgets like small cameras, tape recorders, and mainstream media like the TV networks, the people here now is on the look for corrupt officials and many have already been sacked. Corrupt officials are being punished, first, by trial by publicity through media, and then through courts like Ombudsman and Sandiganbayan.
We can use modern technology to fight back. You may give in to their request, but be clever. While bribing the corrupt, record every detail using our new technology. After you get what you want, that's the time to fight back.
@kiran8 (15348)
• Mangalore, India
19 Sep 10
Hi magti, It is not as easy as that to route out corruption in my country.First of all , it is vast country and there are 20 odd states each of them autonomous with the center having little say in the matters of administration.There are numerous political parties constantly trying to put down the others and are ready to go to any extent to gain power.With this kind of scenario, who do we look up to change the system? Thats why now eminent people from all walks of life are grouping themselves so that they too have some say in the governmental matters, so hopefully we could see some positive changes in the days or years to come ...all the best and have a great sunday
@Sreekala (34312)
• India
10 Apr 10
Hi Kiran,
The situation is very frustrating indeed, in one side our dream home’s work is progressing and the other side we denied the permission to continue the work just for getting money by the officers. I am against to give bribery and of course the situation may irritate me much
. I will consult other people who know about the things in detail and try to find a solution without giving money to the officers. Here I am giving my answer thinking in a hypothetical situation.
But in real life the picture is different. Here, I know people are asking bribery directly without any hesitation
. Illegal constructions are going on smoothly just because of the greedy officers. Major percentages of the people are ready to give bribery forcefully for the smooth work of their dream home.
. I will consult other people who know about the things in detail and try to find a solution without giving money to the officers. Here I am giving my answer thinking in a hypothetical situation.
But in real life the picture is different. Here, I know people are asking bribery directly without any hesitation. Illegal constructions are going on smoothly just because of the greedy officers. Major percentages of the people are ready to give bribery forcefully for the smooth work of their dream home.
@kiran8 (15348)
• Mangalore, India
10 Apr 10
Hi Sreekala, I know it is quite a frustrating situation that we face in our daily lives.Unless you pay you cannot get any work done anywhere.It is easy to talk about being straight and not wanting to pay bribe but sometimes circumstances force us to do it against our wishes...thanks a lot for the response , have a great weekend
