Culture, attitude breeds corruption

THIS view of the current state of affairs in Papua New Guinea may sound negative and harsh but sometimes we all need a collective wakeup call.
PNG is considered one of the most corrupt nations in the world today and sadly this is a fact we cannot escape from.
We do not need a report or an international classification to tell us that all is not well in PNG.
We see it every day.
And most of us, whether we know it or not, participate and encourage corrupt activities that contribute to the mismanagement and breakdown of services and ultimately the society we call Christian and peace-loving.
The proof that PNG is a corrupt nation with regards to development and the standard of living is laid out in our papers almost daily.
If there isn’t a political leader facing questions on his conduct and use of tax payers’ money, there is a furor over the way the government is being run particularly in parliament.
Government departments are no better.
The instances of abuse of power by public servants are rife and continue unabated even though the country has courts and a police force to investigate and punish guilty individuals.
But here is the reason why the country is mired in such a self-defeating cycle of stalled progress and “what ifs” and “what could have been”.
We have a culture and an attitude that perpetuates corruption.
The conditions are practically optimal for white collar crime.

Worried