Truth be told there are criminals in high places, Transparency Int’l confirms what we knew

Truth be told, we didn’t need the pronouncement of Transparency International Corruption Perception Index (CPI), to bring to the fore, what we the masses already knew. For the mountainous corruption evidence, on daily display, stand testament before our very eyes, with immeasurable arrogance. Therefore, what the CPI highlighted, unbridled corruption in People’s Progressive Party (PPP), wasn’t the least surprising to the long-suffering plebeian many. And the fact that our country is burdened by state capture, evidenced by the misappropriation of resources, illicit enrichment, and environmental crimes, was also of least surprise.

But this state capture, not foreign to us, was coined by the World Bank, alluding to a type of systemic political corruption, in which the private interests of the economic and political elites, significantly influence state decision-making. In fact, that is what we the masses are enduring, the pervasively corrupt awarding of infrastructure contracts to the political and economic elites, at the expense of the plebeian many.

But we the plebeian many, with decades of PPP discriminatory pains, remained cognisant that anti-corruption institutions and laws, as outlined in the Transparency International report, weren’t being consistently enforced. Therefore, confronted with this revelation, we were reminded of Bharrat Jagdeo, who not so clandestinely engaged his friend Su, yet stood above the anti-corruption laws. Moreover, we were reminded of Mae Toussaint, who also faced corruption allegations, yet stood above the anti-corruption laws.

Further, we were reminded of Prem Roopnarine, who was also painted by the broad corruption brush, yet stood above the anti-corruption laws. Additionally, we were reminded of Bobby Gossai, who was accused of acting corruptly on the US$214M oil audit, yet stood above the anti-corruption laws. Then we were reminded of Sherwyn Greaves, who acquired a $US800K New York mansion under very questionable circumstances, yet stood above the anti-corruption laws.

Thus, confronted with innumerable who stood above the anti-corruption laws, along with the irrefutable intimidation of activists and journalists, it would have been wholly  surprising if PPP perception of corruption hadn’t risen. And rose the corruption perception inevitably did, as evidenced with our languishing at position 92 out of 180 countries, with a CPI score plummeting from 40 to 39. In fact, this very CPI score stood at an abysmal 29, when the anti-corruption government of President Granger, took office in 2015.

However, by the time this anti-corruption government was forcefully removed from office, the CPI score was evidencing an upward trajectory, standing at a record 41. But on being installed in 2020, PPP immediately went on a campaign of unprecedented grand corruption, as illuminated in the aforementioned, leading to the spiralling downwards of the CPI score, from 41 to 39.

Now, facing irrefutable evidence of grand corruption, even as activists and journalists are being intimidated, the installed President, who graduated from a nonexistent Uitvlugt university, is to question the veracity of the Transparency International report. Moreover, having attempted to discredit the report, the university dropout, of questionable online qualifications, is to characterise the credible report, as being politically biased and not grounded in facts. Then the dunderhead, having failed at discrediting the report, proceeded to question the formulation and methodology of the surveys, which informed said report.

But even as this clinical dunce turns a blind eye, we the masses are cognisant that the surveys, which informed the report, were conducted by reputable international apolitical institutions, such as the World Bank and the World Economic Forum. And confronted with such irrefutable evidence, from reputable international institutions, our anticipation was, the brainless cretin, Irfaan Ali, would have taken his constructive criticism like a man. However, rather than taking the constructive criticism as it was meant to be, the clown in chief, as he usually does, came out with all guns blazing, defending his criminals in high places.