US ranks 27th along with Chile in index compiled by TI
By Jeph Ajobaju, Chief Copy Editor
America comes in at number 27 in the 2021 Corruption Perception Index (CPI) just released by Transparency International (TI) which ranks 180 countries, Nigeria is near the bottom at number 154.
The United States ties with Chile. The United Kingdom is 78th and Germany 80th.
There is no country without corruption and other unlawful activities. What makes the difference is how nations treat sleaze that will get a grip on it or encourage it to fester and expand.
In most countries in the developed Global North – the US, Canada, the UK, Germany, France, Japan, China, et cetera – those caught in crime are tried in court and, if found guilty, jailed to deter them and others who may want to emulate them.
In contrast, in nearly all countries in the developing Global South – from India in South Asia, across African nations, to Brazil in South America – corruption flourishes unhindered because law breakers bribe their way out of punishment.
“Because sentence against an evil work is not executed speedily, therefore the heart of the sons of men is fully set in them to do evil” (Ecclesiastes 8:11 KJV).
- If the law is enforced, it may not change a heart; but it will restrain the heartless.
- If the law is not enforced, it encourages the heartless to become more lawless; and it tempts the righteous to sin.
This Biblical injunction is clearly fulfilled in a country like Nigeria where financial corruption and evasion of justice mount in leaps and bounds daily, especially so under President Muhammadu Buhari who fails to prosecute treasury looters.
Buhari turns a blind eye to even thieves in the public service identified in the yearly reports of his federal Auditor General. Not to talk of Nigerians named in the Pandora Papers reported in international media, anchored in Nigeria by PREMIUM TIMES.
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Corruption in the US
CNN reports below the ranking of the US and some other countries in the 2021 CPI compiled by TI:
As Donald Trump prepares to potentially run for his old office in 2024, it’s worth looking at what his four years as president – and his yearlong campaign to undermine the 2020 election results – meant for the country.
The answer: nothing good.
Consider a new study from Transparency International, an independent nonprofit group that, according to its website, “work[s] to expose the systems and networks that enable corruption to thrive, demanding greater transparency and integrity in all areas of public life.”
On Tuesday, the group released its annual Corruption Perception Index, a score-based system that “ranks 180 countries and territories around the world by their perceived levels of public sector corruption.
The results are given on a scale of 0 (highly corrupt) to 100 (very clean).”
Top of Form
Bottom of Form
The United States comes in a tie for 27th place – with Chile. Both have a Corruption Perception Index score of 67.
By way of comparison, the least corrupt countries – Denmark, Finland and New Zealand – all have a score of 88.
Among the countries with healthier scores are many of the major democracies of Western Europe, including Germany (80) and the United Kingdom (78).
Impact of Trump’s lies
The US’ CPI score had been on the decline for several years. In 2015, the US was at 76. In 2016, 74. By 2020, the US was down to 67, where it remained in 2021.
Why? Simple, according to an analysis from Transparency International:
“The country’s lack of progress on the CPI can be explained by the persistent attacks against free and fair elections, culminating in a violent assault on the US Capitol, and an increasingly opaque campaign finance system.”\
Turns out that a former president – and undisputed leader of the Republican Party – actively undermining what was a free and fair election has consequences. Real and lasting ones.
American democracy withstood Trump’s attempt to override it in 2020 – but only barely. The scars from that attempt – and the ongoing work to raise questions about the validity of the election – remain.