–but TIGI says period too short to determine real achievements
TRANSPARENCY Institute Guyana Inc (TIGI) has said Guyana’s ranking and improved score in Transparency International 2016 Corruption Perception Index should be celebrated, but noted real achievement by Government to fight corruption can only be determined overtime.
Though Guyana moved up 11 places to 108 based on a five-point increase (from 29 to 34) in the corruption perception score last year, TIGI said the difference in the score between 2015 and 2016 lacks statistical significance even at the 10 per cent level.
“The statistics therefore offer no confirmation of the apparent improvement. The statistical test is conservative since the number of surveys used in 2015 and 2016 (four and six respectively) are small. But given that this is about the number of surveys rather than about the number of respondents, statistical significance would be an especially limited way to view the results since it is unlikely that there will ever be very large numbers of surveys to use,” TIGI said in a release.
And on that score, the non-governmental organisation said it would rely more on the substantive interpretations of the index, pointing out that within Latin America, changes in Government regimes are usually accompanied by a period of goodwill that endure an average of approximately two years (Johnson, 2015).
“This suggests that the recent change in Government (in 2015) would have ushered in a period of optimism that would be evident across several issues. This includes confidence in Government and perceptions about corruption. One can therefore argue that improvement in the 2016 CPI was to be expected. This argument becomes more attractive if the CPI returns to its usual level subsequently,” TIGI said.
“Salient issues to be addressed in Guyana include a functional Integrity Commission and Public Procurement Commission, implementation of the promised Code of Conduct for ministers, cancellation of corrupt government contracts and establishment of campaign financing laws. The access to information act is also in urgent need of attention. The Government should become more transparent and accountable at all levels,”—TIGI.
It noted that concurrently, there is inadequate information to invalidate the competing view that there were real achievements in the fight against corruption.
OVERTIME
The argument for real achievements, TIGI said will find support if the improvement holds in subsequent years.
“Nevertheless, neither argument is entirely proven or disproven depending on what happens subsequently since there can be real change followed by real deterioration or a good-will ripple followed by real achievements.
“The perception scores measure perceptions about the absence of corruption. For this reason, low scores are indicative of more pervasive corruption. When these scores are converted to ranks, lower ranks (larger rank values) on the CPI indicate relative pervasiveness of corruption,” the NGO said.
It also stressed that the index should not be used to evaluate Governments on an annual basis since shifts in perceptions will likely occur when the actions taken begin to result in changes in the experiences of the people.
“Some actions can take effect quickly but others may require more time. The best way to view the CPI appears to be over a period rather than as isolated years.
“Guyana has had a sustained poor showing on the index and time will make it clearer whether the surge in 2016 is temporary or more indicative of a real shift in position. Although Guyana’s current rank (108) is unimpressive, we emphasise that the movement in the direction of improvement observed for 2016 is reason to be optimistic.”
Improving Corruption Perception
TIGI also said that improvement in corruption perception requires reductions in the people’s experience of corruption in everyday interactions and in questionable occurrences in Government and the private sector.
Corruption in Government can have a large impact and there is a need for transparency and accountability and willingness to enforce penalties for corrupt behaviour, TIGI said.
It said law enforcement and the judiciary need to be strengthened to the extent that confidence in these institutions begins to improve, and overall, Government should swiftly address the things that it can easily address to demonstrate commitment.
“Salient issues to be addressed in Guyana include a functional Integrity Commission and Public Procurement Commission, implementation of the promised Code of Conduct for ministers, cancellation of corrupt government contracts and establishment of campaign financing laws. The access to information act is also in urgent need of attention. The Government should become more transparent and accountable at all levels,” TIGI said.
It noted too that apart from the actions of Government, those of citizens and citizen organisations are also essential in addressing corruption.
Citizens, the NGO said need to change their attitudes to many forms of everyday corrupt acts.
“In many cases, one can be regarded as foolish for not capitalising on some opportunities for quick gains or to circumvent procedures in everyday interactions including business transactions. This is an indication that many forms of corruption have become expected and condoned among citizens.
“Citizen organisations should educate people about corruption with a view to changing attitudes and the levels of involvement of citizens in the solutions. Subject to its own constraints, TIGI is currently engaged in a project to promote transparency, accountability and anti-corruption in local government. This integrally involves the local authorities and will educate citizens about what is available, encourage them to help set the local agendas and facilitate citizen monitoring of regional projects,” the TIGI statement said.
