Corruption fight being slowly won
Güncelleme Tarihi:
by İzgi Güngör
Oluşturulma Tarihi: Mayıs 28, 2009 00:00
ANKARA - When it comes to the prevalence of corruption, the public has little confidence in public institutions, believing that it is common for public servants to receive gifts in exchange for providing services. However, improvements are visible.
Corruption remains a serious concern for Turkish society and there is an urgent need to eliminate its adverse effects, according to the conclusion of a recently conducted survey by a nongovernmental organization.
Along with Lithuania and Poland, Turkey remains 58th among 180 countries in terms of corruption on the 2008 Corruption Perceptions Index prepared by Transparency International, a global civil-society organization leading the fight against corruption.
Participants in a meeting yesterday to disclose the results of the EU-backed survey expressed their belief that Turkey has taken important steps in combating corruption, leaving many countries behind, but that it still has a long way to move forward, as the surveys indicated a great lack of public confidence in public institutions.
The results of four surveys, carried out as part of a European Union project, on "Conflicts of Interest," "Law Enforcement and Ethics," Land Registry and Ethics" and "Planning in Local Administrations and Ethics" were disclosed yesterday in Ankara with the participation of representatives from the implementing bodies of the European Union, the Council of Europe and Bilal Eryılmaz of the Turkish Prime Ministry’s Council on Ethics in Public Service as well as State Minister Mehmet Aydın.
The surveys analyzed corruption in the public sphere and public perception of corruption in Turkey, and suggested anti-corruption measures.
Based on interviews with 99 high-level public officials, the survey on "Conflicts of Interest" revealed that the public has little confidence in public institutions when it comes to the prevalence of corruption; that it is a common practice employed by public servants to receive gifts in exchange for providing public services; and that there is a need for the preparation of a new personnel system that will also set the salaries for public officials.
The concept of conflict of interest implies a public employee deriving personal benefit from performing public services, such as receiving gifts, using their influence or state commodities for personal purposes, or using confidential information.
The survey also noted that there are no efficient legal arrangements to combat conflicts of interest and suggested that the financing of politics and political campaigns should be regulated and the respective articles of the public-procurement law, which is likely to lead to conflict of interests, be revised.Surveys carried out among police officers and drivers for the report on "Law Enforcement and Ethics" looked at the reasons behind traffic-related bribes and revealed that in most cases, members of the public offered bribes to traffic police. Police officers’ low salaries, their lack of vocational training on corruption and the lack of inspection by senior officers are also among the factors that lead police officers to accept bribes. Ten percent of drivers said they practiced bribery or would do so if stopped. Seventy-five percent said they would do what the traffic police asked of them. One-fourth of all drivers said traffic police had asked them for bribes, and 80 percent of them paid the money.
The heavy fine and points penalty also result in the practice of bribery, the survey said. The number of bribe incidents, however, is lower than in the past and a greater sensitivity to the issue has been observed among newly graduated traffic police officers. The survey on "Land Registry and Ethics" aimed to display factors that lead to ethical problems in land registry offices.
Based on surveys and interviews with officials working in land registry offices, real estate agent owners and citizens who used the registry’s services, the survey showed that most of the citizens think rewards and gifts are common practices employed in these offices. The most common unethical practice in their businesses is accepting a gift or tip regarding the procedures that actually comply with the law, according to public servants working in land registry offices. This is followed by favoring relatives, friends or others for personal and political reasons.
Land registry officers, real estate agent owners and citizens agree that these types of incidents occur mostly due to citizens’ will to accelerate bureaucratic procedures rather than corruption purposes, according to the survey. The lack of social facilities including food, bus shuttles and public housing are also among the complaints voiced by public employees working in the land registry offices. The survey on "Planning in Local Administrations and Ethics" aimed to reveal ethics problems concerning planning and reconstruction by local administrations.
Basic motive desire for profit
Surveys and interviews with municipal officials working in these fields showed that the basic motive underlying ethical problems is the desire to make a profit, followed by rapid urbanization and the deficiency of legal sanctions to combat ethics problems.
Along with Lithuania and Poland, Turkey remains 58th among 180 countries in terms of corruption on the 2008 Corruption Perceptions Index prepared by Transparency International, a global civil-society organization leading the fight against corruption.
Participants in a meeting yesterday to disclose the results of the EU-backed survey expressed their belief that Turkey has taken important steps in combating corruption, leaving many countries behind, but that it still has a long way to move forward, as the surveys indicated a great lack of public confidence in public institutions.
The results of four surveys, carried out as part of a European Union project, on "Conflicts of Interest," "Law Enforcement and Ethics," Land Registry and Ethics" and "Planning in Local Administrations and Ethics" were disclosed yesterday in Ankara with the participation of representatives from the implementing bodies of the European Union, the Council of Europe and Bilal Eryılmaz of the Turkish Prime Ministry’s Council on Ethics in Public Service as well as State Minister Mehmet Aydın.
The surveys analyzed corruption in the public sphere and public perception of corruption in Turkey, and suggested anti-corruption measures.
Based on interviews with 99 high-level public officials, the survey on "Conflicts of Interest" revealed that the public has little confidence in public institutions when it comes to the prevalence of corruption; that it is a common practice employed by public servants to receive gifts in exchange for providing public services; and that there is a need for the preparation of a new personnel system that will also set the salaries for public officials.
The concept of conflict of interest implies a public employee deriving personal benefit from performing public services, such as receiving gifts, using their influence or state commodities for personal purposes, or using confidential information.
The survey also noted that there are no efficient legal arrangements to combat conflicts of interest and suggested that the financing of politics and political campaigns should be regulated and the respective articles of the public-procurement law, which is likely to lead to conflict of interests, be revised.Surveys carried out among police officers and drivers for the report on "Law Enforcement and Ethics" looked at the reasons behind traffic-related bribes and revealed that in most cases, members of the public offered bribes to traffic police. Police officers’ low salaries, their lack of vocational training on corruption and the lack of inspection by senior officers are also among the factors that lead police officers to accept bribes. Ten percent of drivers said they practiced bribery or would do so if stopped. Seventy-five percent said they would do what the traffic police asked of them. One-fourth of all drivers said traffic police had asked them for bribes, and 80 percent of them paid the money.
The heavy fine and points penalty also result in the practice of bribery, the survey said. The number of bribe incidents, however, is lower than in the past and a greater sensitivity to the issue has been observed among newly graduated traffic police officers. The survey on "Land Registry and Ethics" aimed to display factors that lead to ethical problems in land registry offices.
Based on surveys and interviews with officials working in land registry offices, real estate agent owners and citizens who used the registry’s services, the survey showed that most of the citizens think rewards and gifts are common practices employed in these offices. The most common unethical practice in their businesses is accepting a gift or tip regarding the procedures that actually comply with the law, according to public servants working in land registry offices. This is followed by favoring relatives, friends or others for personal and political reasons.
Land registry officers, real estate agent owners and citizens agree that these types of incidents occur mostly due to citizens’ will to accelerate bureaucratic procedures rather than corruption purposes, according to the survey. The lack of social facilities including food, bus shuttles and public housing are also among the complaints voiced by public employees working in the land registry offices. The survey on "Planning in Local Administrations and Ethics" aimed to reveal ethics problems concerning planning and reconstruction by local administrations.
Basic motive desire for profit
Surveys and interviews with municipal officials working in these fields showed that the basic motive underlying ethical problems is the desire to make a profit, followed by rapid urbanization and the deficiency of legal sanctions to combat ethics problems.