Corruption
Two days ago, I would have never thought that the road next to Martyr’s Square and part of the highway next to Tabaris needed change. Apparently, those in charge thought otherwise – but considering that there are quite a large number of roads strewn with potholes less than 10 minutes away from downtown, it is more than possible that this “project” was undertaken in order to line someone’s pocket. An international donor conference will soon take place, which hopefully will be constructive, but the potential corruption in the existing government should be taken care of in order for Lebanon to fully benefit. We need accountability, transparency, and auditing. We should not accept a construction project on a 4 km highway stretch (which only entailed tarring) to cost 12 million dollars, or the price of a phone call to cost approximately half a dollar per minute, or ministers to have no background in the ministry they are responsible for (for example, how much experience does Pierre Gemayel have in industry?).Those who once dipped their hands in what has now become a hole future generations must fill will once again get the chance to do so. If it is true that “power corrupts”, and that “only the corruptible can be corrupted”, then why do we still give power to those who have previously proven that they are corruptible?
posted by Lazarus, 12:40 PM
4 Comments:
I am not sure that Lebanon has ever experienced a period of non-corruption at all levels of both private and public institutions.When budgets and positions are awarded on the basis of who you know and what what you know then it would be difficult to build a modern society. That is why I do not share the optimism of many regarding the Cedar Revolution. Its accomplishments so far are a tiny downpayment on the changes that need to be eventually implemented. But I guess that a thousand mile journey starts with a step!!!!
Anyway, Transparancy International has ranked Lebanon as the 83rd most corrupt country in the world for 2005 and that is not a record that we can be proud of. What is even worse is that the same report ranks Syria as the 76th most corrupt country in the world. We have learned well from our masterslol.
By
Anonymous, at 2:07 PM
“how much experience does Pierre Gemayel have in industry?” It’s funny that you should ask this. When he was asked if he was intimidated by the burden of running the ministry of industry, he was like “No problem, my family had a leather factory”! And this was on TV!
By
Hassan, at 3:19 PM
George Bernard Shaw once said, "Democracy is a device that ensures we shall be governed no better than we deserve." and obviously, we, the Lebanese people, don't deserve any better. When we elect, we are carried away by the "brainwashing" that the media experiences on us... We are carried away by the "ma7dle" of Nabih Berri.
By the way, what does Amal minister, Talal Al-Sahili, know about agriculture when he has a degree in telecommunications? It is simply, putting the wrong person in the wrong place to make sure that we will stay "enslaved".
By
lifeflaw, at 1:00 AM
The problem in Lebanon is that corruption is an integral part of our mentality. Every single one of us makes use of "wasta". It is acceptable. It is acceptable to get a job because our uncle knows the owner or to get accepted into a school because our grandmother knows the dean, or to get away with arrest because our cousin "knows somebody". The peoples are no more accountable than the leaders. We have no respect for order or equality. It's always the poor with no connections that wll suffer.
By
Anonymous, at 6:56 AM
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