Integrity in government is up to the people

Integrity in government is up to the people

Patrick Guntensperger, Business Consultant, Jakarta

ttpguntensperger@hotmail.com

While the idealists among us may feel that the acquittal of
Akbar Tandjung on charges of corruption is enough to make one
throw one's hands up in frustration and the cynics just shrug and
say, welcome to Indonesia, perhaps some of us can find room for
hope. Let's try.

Corruption in government, in the civil services and in every
day business is by far the most significant impediment to this
country's progress. During the course of my work and since I have
made Indonesia my home, I have spoken to business people and
potential investors; I have had dialogues with foreign
entertainers and have consulted with NGOs and charities from
abroad, all of whom have considered bringing their money, their
talent, their expertise and their goodwill to Indonesia.

In every single one of those categories, the vast majority of
those who were considering investing, performing, donating or
even just spending money in Indonesia chose not to. And every
single one of those lost opportunities was almost entirely due to
the rampant corruption that exists in this country.

Investors won't put their money into enterprises here because
of the bribery that is required and the virtual certainty that
corrupt officials of every branch of government they come into
contact with will extort more and more money. This fiscal
disadvantage more than offsets the potential profit to be made.

Many big name entertainers won't perform here for similar
reasons; although they have viable fan bases here and they could
easily sell more than enough tickets at high enough prices to
make this a profitable stop on a world tour, their business
managers reject Indonesia because of the embezzlement they would
be subjected to and the impossibility of dealing with an
efficient and honest civil service.

Saddest of all, international aid organizations radically
restrict their contributions to Indonesian causes because of the
(largely accurate) perception that the charitable funds they
bring in will disappear into the pockets of corrupt individuals.
Make no mistake; people die every day as a direct result of
corruption in Indonesia

So where is the cause for hope? Perhaps the fact there have
been demonstrations and a passionate denouncement of the Akbar
decision tells us something.

Just this week, I was at a public hospital in order to pay the
medical bills for a six-year-old child who had just died of
cancer. I was there with the child's grieving and very poor
parents and watched in amazement as the hospital staff
industriously tried to gouge the mother, to inflate the bill and
to obtain bribes in order to do nothing more than produce an
honest accounting.

I finally blew up and threatened the staff with criminal
charges and legal action of every sort until the dismayed public
servants finally produced an accurate accounting. Everyone was
profoundly upset at my boorishness, but the bill was accurate.
Afterwards I asked the people with me why they tolerated such
brutal dishonesty and heartlessness. As usual, the reaction was
just a shrug and the welcome to Indonesia response.

We have corruption in Indonesia because we tolerate it. We
have dishonesty in public affairs and in private business because
it is acceptable. Dishonest dealings are the norm because people
do not become incensed when they are robbed, extorted and
cheated.

There is nothing commendable about standing by and smiling
while someone, particularly someone in public service,
deliberately and openly solicits a bribe or abuses his authority
in order to increase his personal wealth. To tolerate that
conduct is to endorse it. To allow it is to encourage it.

When we permit someone to abuse his power to take advantage of
us, we demean ourselves and we contribute to the cesspool of
corruption that is holding Indonesia back from her rightful place
among the evolved nations of the world.

So perhaps the ray of hope that can be found in all the news
that surrounds the Akbar decision is, in a very unfortunate way,
the vociferous objection that some people of conscience are
expressing. Protests against the decision erupted in Jakarta,
Yogyakarta, Bandung, Semarang, Kendari and elsewhere throughout
the country. That is actually one of the most encouraging signs
we have seen in some time. While violent protest is deplorable
and should not be tolerated, angry protest should be given a fair
hearing.

The public's expression of dissatisfaction with a court
verdict, after all, is a perfectly legitimate response in a
democratic society. Indonesia does not yet have a long tradition
of democracy and most citizens have never voted in a free
election. It is not unreasonable therefore, for the people to
want their voices heard. The angry voices are voices of
integrity...they are the voices that will, if listened to, help
take Indonesia from a neo-feudal anachronism to a respected place
at the table shared by the community of nations.