"Rarely a day goes by without a corruption scandal hitting the headlines in one of our 49 member states. Ordinary citizens of both our old and no longer so young democracies often face corruption in their daily lives, falling victim to graft and abuse of position in their contacts with public services, including health and education professionals and even judges and prosecutors.
At the same time, institutions set up to fight corruption frequently face a lack of resources, legal obstacles to doing their work properly, or even political interference when dealing with high-profile cases.
When the politicians we turn to for leadership pay only lip-service to fighting corruption, notably in their own ranks, democracy falters.
Some might think this is too sharp a claim, but it is not. The results of GRECO´s evaluations show that we have good reason to ring the alarm bells. What our current country evaluations teach us is that boosting the integrity of MPs (and also of judges and prosecutors) is a must.
Of course, some of our member states don’t have a problem in these sectors nor with overall governance, and I am happy to say that the work of the 49 countries in GRECO has more often than not had significant impact in these areas. That said, one cannot turn a blind eye to the fact that in several member states of GRECO, as well as in numerous other parts of the world, people have taken to the street to protest vehemently against corruption and bad governance. All too frequently, political parties score low on widely publicised measures of public trust and are considered “a rotten lot”.
Citizens will certainly continue to denounce corruption, trading in influence and other deplorable practices of those who are meant to responsibly manage public and civil affairs and to promote and protect the common good.
The anti-corruption community must underscore more assertively the need for stronger political will to bring about lasting progress. Promises of morality and ethics are not enough. The 9th of December is a good opportunity to remind ourselves of this basic truth."
