Arms Deals Don't Happen without Comrade Bribery [Cape Argus, 2008-08-22]

Publication: Cape Argus Issued: Date: 2008-08-22 Reporter: Lunga

Arms Deals Don't Happen without Comrade Bribery

Publication	Cape Argus
Date	2008-08-22
Reporter	Lunga
Web Link	www.capeargus.co.za

In writing this missive, I've done a quick search on the internet for corruption in the arms industry. The results, although not surprising, are very disturbing.

The arms industry and bribery (referred to as "commissions" by the pedlars of death) have built a well-established, symbiotic relationship to the extent that the arms industry has difficulty negotiating with governments in the absence of comrade bribery.

Despite the well-known fact of this symbiosis, it is hardly ever dealt with by governments.

Contrary to popular belief, unauthorised "commission" payments are not confined to developing countries but also extend to developed countries.

The German government lost a deputy minister of defence who could not resist making a quick euro by assisting the arms dealers. The British government was forced to enact legislation to deal with the problem, but even this did not stop bribery - the BAE-Saudi arms deal investigation was stopped prematurely by the government. The US government does not stop at bribery - it starts wars to stimulate its arms and oil industries.

Our own much-derided arms deal has gone the way of most, if not all arms deals. The more questions are asked about this deal, the more questions are uncovered. The powers that be have only been able to cause increasing despair and anger among the people, instead of addressing the real concerns, which are:

Who performed the risk assessment of the project and the procurement process?
Have they considered the reputation of arms deals globally during this risk assessment?
Have they considered the enormous increase in the financial liability over the period of the procurement process?
Who authorised and changed the selection criteria to favour the current recipients of this deal?
Why are the trade-off projects not being audited to ensure that recipients of contracts deliver on their commitments?
Who have paid and received "commissions"?

The biggest questions, however, are those that ask what is the urgency about pouring much-needed resources down the arms drain when we face serious challenges in restructuring and building infrastructure to eliminate inequalities introduced over many years by apartheid.

We are still faced with rural schools under a tree and/or no toilets, electricity or laboratory facilities. We still have millions living in shacks and little/no means to earn a living. We still have a crumbling transport infrastructure that needs massive investment. We still have a health infrastructure that's falling apart and unable to serve the needs of our people.

I have accepted that we'll never get satisfactory answers to these questions because the people are not in power - that is wielded by the political elite that is plundering our resources.

The people who have undertaken to lead our country from oppression by the NP are perpetrating a different kind of oppression, similar to that practised by many African dictators.

They will take what they can while the people continue to suffer. They will make us economic slaves but fail to improve the lives of our people, be-cause they do not pay "commissions".

Bribery and corruption at government level are crimes against the nation state.

Lunga
Johannesburg

With acknowledgements to Lunga and Cape Argus.

This is one clever Lunga.