Ekathimerini website reports today (March 3, 2010) that corruption is thriving at an all-time high in Greece's public and private sectors, with staff at hospitals, tax offices, and town-planning offices among the worst offenders, according to Transparency International's (TI) Greek office.
Bribes paid to Greek officials in 2009 rose by 50 million euros to 790 million euros, the corruption watchdog said, noting that the bulk of the increase was due to illicit transactions in the private sector.
According to a survey of 6,122 people carried out for TI's Greek office by polling firm Public Issue, hospitals accounted for 33.5 percent of bribes taken, with tax offices and local authority services accounting for 15.7 and 15.9 percent, respectively. Banks and lawyers are next on the list with 10.8 percent and 9 percent of cases.
In the state sector, the average bribe was 1,355 euros, and in the private sector1,671 euros, according to the survey.
Costas Bakouris, head of TI's Athens office, said the problem is not the lack of legal provisions for curbing corruption, but the non-implementation of existing ones. Bakouris and Public Issue Director, Yiannis Mavris, both said that Greece's current financial crisis is closely linked to graft. "It is a problem with very deep roots," Mavris said.
I believe that it is now critical for the Greek government to enforce Greece's anti-corruption laws, instead of ignoring them. This article portrays a sad image of life in Greece today, and it is even deplorable when one keeps in mind that Greece was the birthplace of democracy, which we cherish immensely in the United States. What has become of the spiritual-minded Christian and democratic values that used to prevail in Greece?
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment