“WHEN we hear talk about corruption steadily increasing with no real solutions coming forth to deal with this menace or dealing with it in a selective manner will mean one thing only – the citizens having no confidence in those who are at the helm of affairs and this will result in pushing the citizen to believe that corruption has become a way of life and that it is no longer a violation of quality of life since birth,” columnist Sattam Ahmad Al-Jarallah wrote for Al-Seyassah daily.

Sattam Al Jarallah

“The lot of corruption cases which we heard of in recent years, have been handled from the correct legal perspective, but we feel these cases have been handled in a selective manner when it comes to punishing the corrupt.

“We say this because the cases of corruption are rampant in all State institutions and there is a fear over the fate of people’s earnings and has affected the very culture of the Kuwaiti society – the spirit of individual initiative which forms the basis of the nation’s commercial renaissance for which the foundation was laid over the centuries. As it stands, fraud has become a way of life and normal behavior for many even when dealing with traffic ‘infringements’ where wasta plays a big role in deleting these violations.

“In this respect corruption has played a big role in increasing the cost of all projects and with it the cost of living in the State of Kuwait which has shot up to unrealistic levels. To add insult to injury the investors are seeking for better prospects somewhere else and a testimony of all this is the economic report which was issued in 2009 which says Kuwait drives away investors from the country.

“Not just that, if the rumors that we hear hold any water, some Kuwaiti investors have started leaving the local scene and taking their money abroad. The rumors say this is because these investors have to pay money in the form of bribe to get the green light for their projects. These investors feel they can invest their money abroad without any red-tape headaches which they suffer from in Kuwait.

“However, in the face of all these issues all the institutions and all the authorities in the country must review the current situation and start taking confidence building measures. This can be primarily done foremost by punishing the corrupt and doing away with the method of selective treatment which forces us to live in unhealthy atmosphere. “

Speaking of the selectivity, this can be witnessed at a broader level even when it comes to electing our MPs to the National Assembly. Some are involved in the illegal primaries or bye elections which are held in secret to support and put forward the names of the contestants to the parliamentary elections.

“We say all this happens because the State institutions which are supposed to implement the law are infested with ‘favoritism’. These institutions must be persuaded to impose the solemnity of the state.”