All corruption is based on fraud
THE TERM ‘ corruption’ has become so generic, so overworn and over-used these days, that it has almost become utterly meaningless. Over a coffee recently, I was chatting to a lawenforcement colleague about Jamaica’s travails in combatting public-sector corruption, and he posited that perhaps Jamaicans are so comfortable with the word corruption that it has begun to lose all meaning, no longer eliciting feelings of anger and outrage as it should.
Think about it, he said, if gunmen hypothetically held up the central bank one day and ran off with $100 billion of taxpayers’ hardearned money, the immediate response would be to launch a massive, islandwide manhunt for the perpetrators, complete with stop orders at our ports. Why no such response then, when we hear about corrupt public officials dipping into the government kitty?
Why haven’t we been as outraged, therefore, when corruption loots us of that very same $100 billion each year? One theory is that, unlike our hypothetical bank robbery in all its spectacular, headline-grabbing glory, corruption operates much like a dripping water pipe. At first, It seems harmless and innocuous, more of an annoyance than anything else. But check your water bill at the end of the month and you’ll see that this dripdrip-drip has become anything but harmless. And just like that dripping pipe, we have learnt to live with tolerate and ignore corruption, in all its forms – until of course, the bill comes due.
FRAUD IN DISGUISE
Now, let’s look at another word that, thanks to the recent spate of high-profile, white-collar crimes, elicits a much more visceral emotion of anger and indignation – fraud.
Fraud is, quite simply, wrongful or criminal deception intended to bring personal or financial gain to the fraudster. The key word here is ‘deception’. This is why so many persons have judged fraud suspects in these bank and financial crimes as being no different from the common scammers plaguing the country. One wears a suit and tie, the other wears tattoos and tight pants, but society considers both to be reprehensible parasites.
But not the corrupt politician or public official, who gets away with a shrug and a mere “Cho, a so di ting set”.
Why, then, do we hate fraud and fraudsters, but tolerate corruption and corrupt persons? Perhaps it’s because fraudsters are viewed with universal disdain, given that fraud is considered a more explicit breach of trust than the broader, more amorphous term, corruption.
Fraud is a deliberate act to deceive, manipulate or exploit others and elicits strong negative connotations associated with the intentional and personal nature of the crime. Because of this, fraud, unlike corruption, is less likely to be tolerated or accepted within societal norms, as it is perceived as a violation of not just legal and ethical boundaries, but also of deep personal trust. Further, the immediate and tangible harm caused by fraud contributes to the more severe societal condemnation of the misconduct.
IN COMPARISON
Corruption, on the other hand, is a much broader term encompassing various forms of misconduct. It has, to some extent, become so ingrained in our lives that is as Jamaican as jerk chicken. This normalisation of corruption and the resulting lenient attitude towards it support the perception that it is a less severe transgression, compared to fraud, making it even more difficult to identify and therefore condemn.
But is it possible that we’ve been looking at this issue the wrong way all along? Could it be that at its core, all forms of corruption are based on some form of fraud, with the ultimate goal being to deceive. Think about it. In every corrupt act, from embezzlement to nepotism, bribery, conflict of interest or procurement violations, someone, somewhere is being deceived. For example, corruption in a government agency may be fuelled by fraudulent accounting practices, falsified documents and manipulated credentials, all designed to trick, scam or hide the truth.
Corruption and fraud therefore overlap and converge, with an act of fraud serving as the precursor to every act of corruption. This overlapping terrain is marked by a cycle of deception, where the perpetration of fraud begets corruption, and corruption, in turn, begets more fraud. Head spinning, yes I know.
Deception and fraud are therefore the seeds that pave the way for corruption to establish its deep roots. The connection between the two is not merely coincidental, but rather, a dynamic and symbiotic interplay with fraudulent activities acting as a progenitor of every corrupt act.
TOWARDS MORE COMPREHENSIVE STRATEGIES
The intentional concealment and deception inherent in fraudulent activities therefore creates a fertile breeding ground for corruption. These deceptive manoeuvres not only shield corrupt actors from scrutiny, but also contribute to the normalisation of unethical behaviour within our society. It’s not a mere coexistence then. Rather, it’s a synergy where the deceptive practices of f raud provide the cover, the camouflage, and the lubrication for corrupt elements to manoeuvre without attracting attention.
Once we understand and accept the dynamics of this overlapping and interdependent relationship between fraud and corruption, we can begin to develop more comprehensive strategies to combat both. This i ncludes changing the lexicon around our anti-corruption strategies, in order to more accurately capture the despicable and deceptive nature of corruption.
From there, we can begin to strengthen our financial regulations, implement and adhere to more rigorous auditing processes, and foster a national culture of transparency as essential components of combating these intertwined forces.
Once we get into the habit of seeing corrupt persons as one and the same, as the disgusting parasites preying on and swindling innocent victims each day, perhaps then we can start to develop a similar zero-tolerance attitude towards corrupt officials and the despicable persons who harbour, support and enable them.
Major Basil Jarrett is a communications strategist and CEO of Artemis Consulting, a communications consulting firm specialising in crisis communications and reputation management. Follow him on Twitter, Instagram, Threads @IamBasilJarrett and linkedin.com/in/basiljarrett. Send feedback to columns@gleanerjm.com.