Forget about the so-called government commitment to zero tolerance of corruption, it is a sweet lullaby and an irritating rhetoric. Forget about the rave review Botswana gets from Transparency International, they are delusional. That Botswana is still among the least corrupt countries in the world just goes to show the extent to which this world is rotten. It is like a guy telling a woman that she is the prettiest thing he ever met when the woman knows that she has won successive international contests for the ugliest being. For those of us who are on the ground and actually witness the effects of corruption on the economy, we shudder to imagine what really goes on in other countries that are lowly ranked than Botswana. It cannot be right that a country so weighed down by corruption could get so much praise for being the least corrupt. Whereas Botswana has created credible institutions, in particular, the Directorate on Corruption and Economic Crime (DCEC) to deal with corruption and economic crime, the lack of political will to root out corruption among the elite potent disaster for the economy. The lack of political will also means that corruption is not considered a priority and the endless harrowing revelations from investigations by different organs are simply dismissed as jealousy and the usual noise made by lazy people. The ruthlessly corrupt bandits are buoyed by this lack of political will which perhaps explains why elite corruption is more prevalent than petty corruption and on the basis of this, Botswana need to go back to the drawing board to introspect and review its anti-corruption mechanisms before the wheels ? nally fall off. However, this call for introspection is in itself paradoxical because the very same corrupt elites are the ones who stage manage the public policy making process and as such continue to delude people into believing that policies and programs are initiated in the public interest whereas the truth is that initiatives are done in their self- interest precisely to maintain the status
quo. Thus, it is pretty foolish to expect the same people who are bene?ting from corruption to commit themselves to rooting it out. Strangely, those who are negatively affected by corruption are afraid to campaign openly against it for fear of being fed to crocodiles or thrown out of moving trains hence corruption has reached crisis levels. Yet, we are reminded that to oppose corruption in government is the highest obligation of patriotism (Edward Grif?n).
It is because of elite corruption that Botswana has to grapple with poor infrastructure and services. It is because of corruption that it is taking us half a decade to renovate [by merely painting] the national stadium with such a small sitting capacity. It is because of corruption that state enterprises always have to be bailed out year in, year out. It is because of corruption that every year the country record declining public revenue and it is because of corruption that some of the people with the lowest IQ have become cabinet ministers. While there is always someone at the center of these corrupt deals (ring leader or main bene? ciary), the largesse is often spread around so many people, especially those who belong to the ruling establishment, including their extended families. As more and more party members, friends and family members come to the table, small interest groups transform into huge criminal syndicates leading to an unholy struggle for lucrative tenders and in? uential positions in the government and before we all know, our country will be in the hands of dangerous groups with no respect for human life. President Khama and his government’s inability or lack of determination to deal with elite corruption particularly among his cabinet ministers and high pro? le government of? cials are pointers that the stakes are high. It is against this background that Botswana should swallow her pride and recognize corruption as a national crisis deserving customized interventions to ensure that the vice is tackled holistically.
There is need to refocus attention towards main vulnerable areas such as state enterprises and as well as improve the public perception of anti- corruption legislation. By dealing with corruption as an isolated misdemeanor and then treating the private media for reporting about it as an outcast shows that the government is irresponsible and mischievous. Yet, it should be noted that to those who are outside of the strata of political in? uence and not bene? tting from corruption it is matter of life and death such that they keep inventing ways that could help them compete with the heavy weights of corruption hence many government of? cials in the lower cadres have resorted to what is called quiet corruption (World Bank- African Development Indicators 2010. Silent and Lethal: How Silent Corruption undermines Africa’s development efforts, 2010).
This is the type of corruption that is low key such as malpractices of frontline service providers that do not involve monetary exchange. Such behavior would include absenteeism, lower levels of efforts expended at work and theft of small things like pencils and patients’ foods. In the long run the combined effects of grand corruption and quiet corruption would be so devastating as to literally bring Botswana on its knees. This then justi? es the need for a tailored intervention in the form of a national action plan against corruption. The proposed action plan should shift emphasis from punishing wrong doers to preventing corruption by developing ef? cient norms and standards for reducing opportunities for commission of corruption. The action plan will help turn our dreams of a corrupt free society into reality since it will present a kind of a blueprint with detailed steps or changes to be initiated to meet set objectives. In consequence, the action plan would necessarily place the government on a tight leash to act against corruption following a detailed step by step rescue plan with limited escape routes.
A few years ago, former chief spokesperson of the African National Congress (ANC) Smuts Ngonyama when questioned about his unethical business conduct, commented that he did not join the struggle to stay poor (Johnson & Lane, 2009: South Africa’s Brave New World: The beloved country since the end of apartheid). This was at the height of revelations that the ANC leadership was bleeding the South African economy. In many ways, Ngonyama’s honest remarks has relevance to the state of affairs in Botswana where corrupt deals are penciled out to parachute the BDP’s loud mouths and street ?ghters into the moneyed class. Bluntly put, we are somewhat expected to come to terms with the fact that people did not join the BDP to stay poor hence the party is wedded to corruption and the use of illicit funds to ? nance its electoral campaigns has become its culture. This basically explains why it is pro?table to be a BDP politician ÔÇô the BDP has become a stock exchange that guarantees riches.
