The high level of corruption in central and eastern Europe Essay

The high level of corruption in central and eastern Europe - Essay Example In relation, this essay will try to explain the high level of corruption in Central and Eastern Europe. The discussion will tackle the reasons of the social problem. It will also include the methods that to be adopted in dealing with corruption. Corruption is indeed a social and legal problem. It is a social problem since the society as a whole is the one primarily affected of its effects. In almost all sectors, traces of corruption are eminent. It is also a legal problem since it is punishable under the laws of the community. The nations of the world have created their own laws against corruption. Nevertheless, corruption is still a pressing problem. Only a few corrupt individuals are successfully convicted and punished. Thus, there is a need to devise strategies that would effectively curb the acts of the corruption especially in the developing world. In connection, the majority of the countries making up the Central and Eastern part of Europe are actually considered developing sta tes. Benjamin Olken describes corruption like a tax. It adds to the expenses of conducting businesses and providing public services. In countries where corruption is imminent, public services are often poor and inadequate. Corruption lessens the budget needed to effectively and efficiently serve the people in a community. On the side of the business sector, putting up and maintaining a business would be harder than ever due to corruption. As cited by Nathaniel Heller, corruption presents a great barrier to the development and progress of any nation.7 This statement is quite logical. Anyone can in fact understand the rationale behind such contention. In a country, if corruption is present, the budget for the delivery of basic services would be low, unproportioned, and insufficient. For instance, there would only be low budget for education and health. If this is the case, one could expect that teachers will have low salary and educational resources for students would be scarce. In another aspect, medical centers will not have enough supply of medicines and equipments to cure the minor diseases of the people. The ultimate problem about corruption is that it makes the rich people become richer while the poor becomes poorer. It is a fact that only rich persons can thrive in a system which is full of corruption. The poor citizens on the other hand bear the costs of corruption. There is a negative impact in this sense.8 Cor ruption per se destroys the very foundation of a society. It undermines the faith in government and unwinds a lot of links between citizens and governmental institutions.9 Stated otherwise, corruption is the reason why there are people who do not believe in the establishment of governments. They believe that a government does not bring them any good except poverty and injustices. This should not be the case. Corruption in CEE In Central and Eastern Europe, there have been numerous cases of official corruption ranging from top level positions to local levels and across governmental