Seeds of Corruption Grow Into Creepers, Climbers and Trees

This was narrated to me by the Vice-Principal of a well-established school.

In the absence of the Principal, she the Vice-Principal of the school was asked to take charge of the admissions for the following academic year.

In the process of preparation for the same, she thought that she had a good topic for a value education class for the tenth standard students. When she met the class she told them that between her and them, she had decided to take Rs. 10,000/- for every admission (this was about 30 years ago, probably considered peanuts now). She asked them whether her decision was right.

The students went into a huddle and debated and discussed. Their unanimous decision was that it would be very wrong for her to do so. The reasons given were many, one of which was that, as a teacher and Vice-Principal she would be setting the wrong example.

She then asked the students to discuss what the position of their parents would be if asked to give or take a bribe.

After a feeble discussion, the answer was that it would be quite okay for their parents to give or take a bribe. The reason: ‘How can we get our jobs done?’ Everyone gives or takes a bribe!

Wow! Double standards indeed!!

‘We sow the seeds of corruption in our homes.’

Yes, agreed, it is a sweeping, broad, generalized statement. However, please pause for a moment, close your eyes and run through the last few weeks. Identify all that was said and done that could be labelled ‘bribes or bribing’ (big or small) in the home.

These are the seeds that can grow into creepers, climbers, shrubs, small trees or big trees of corruption as one journeys through life.

Consider the following situations:

• A toddler who is refusing to eat, is allowed gadget time in order to complete the meal.
• During a parenting session, a parent wanted to know if he had done right in promising his son an I-Pad if he won the badminton tournament (in his category) of their Housing Association.
• An adolescent demands an upper end mobile for only then will he study. Parents give in.

Bribes are the common factor in all the situations. So what is a bribe?

Bribes are offered before the expected behaviour:

• The toddler is given a gadget to eat
• The boy is promised an I-Pad to win a tournament
• The adolescent is given the upper end mobile for him to work hard and perform well

Bribes are also offered to avoid or stop bad behaviour. For example: If you do not whine and sulk at the mall, we will give you a gift. That is a bribe.

What is the alternative to a bribe?

It would be a reward or positive reinforcement. Rewards are earned and therefore come after the behaviour. Rewards are decisions and simply wonderful if they are surprises.

Here is a conversation between a Bribe and a Reward:

B — I always come before the action; therefore I am able to get the job done.
R — I come after a job well done.

B — I can make people feel powerful with all the bribes they have received.
R — I make people feel proud of their work.

B — People use me when they get impatient, angry or desperate. Negative feelings bring me out.
R — Talking about feelings: I make people feel happy, joyous and motivated to do even better. I bring out positive feelings.

B — I teach people that the only way to succeed is to extort compensation for something they should be doing in the first place.
R — I really feel sad for them. Imagine living your life in suspended anticipation; always waiting to be bribed to do what one had to do in the first place.

B — I know that I will always be in business, for once one starts down the path of bribing — ‘giving or taking’ then it will be really hard to break the cycle. That is why it is good to start with the young as they will always expect a ‘this for that’ even as they grow older.
R — I certainly can’t live my life like that — forever at the bargaining table. Even adults are motivated by rewards — a rise in salary, a promotion, praise or a citation, even a warm handshake and a smile will do.

B — I wanted to ask you, as you seem to know a lot about this, who do you think is worse, the giver or the taker?
R — In my opinion, both are the same. Wait, wait, I think the giver is slightly worse, unless the taker is also a demander. We often look down on the police constable for taking a bribe. Just observe, what the rich do when caught for a traffic fault? The wallet comes out first. Who started it? It was the giver.

B –I am beginning to get convinced by what you are saying. At the same time there is something troubling me. You see, I am being used in a dance of seduction. Let me explain — the maid at school is given a saree secretly to take extra care of the child. Or a loan is needed and so the banker is first seduced with a drink maybe, moving on to providing a fuel filled vehicle to go on a trip, or maybe a percentage of the loan. Getting a driver’s licence without a Driving Test. And so on and so forth …
R — I never thought of you as a seducer, but yes, bribes can even seduce a person of integrity. One has to be strong to stand by one’s values. I did not say it would be easy!

Having heard this conversation, would you still disagree that we sow the seeds of corruption in our homes?

Please make the right choices, for after all, we would all like to have a good night’s rest wouldn’t we?

‘Peace is its own reward’ Mahatma Gandhi