What can explain the fact that even among low income developing countries,the level of and degree of corruption can vary significantly from one to another? What are the implications of such variation?

Corruption is defined as the abuse of power in decision-making processes , which deviates from ethics , morality , tradition , law , and civic virtue . It has pervaded almost all walks of life , from simple to large businesses , and it plays a central role in politics (NZTCC

There are three broad classifications of corruption however , they are not mutually exclusive . These are petty and grand corruption , political and business corruption , and chaotic and organized corruption . of these are better or worse than the other (NZTCC

Petty corruption is defined as the use of public office to

derive private benefit . It is usually practiced on a smaller scale , and involves a smaller amount of money . Grand corruption is usually practiced by public officials in higher offices , and they use their power to influence the policy-making process to generate their private income . It is present in the financial , administrative , and political centers of power (NZTCC

Business corruption occurs to speed up business processes , but it does not alter the end product . Political corruption is more prevalent in less developed or developing countries , and it occurs during the electoral process (NZTCC

Chaotic corruption is when no clarity is present as to whom to bribe and how much to bribe . Organized corruption is when it is clear as to whom to bribe , and how much it costs . The favor being asked will be confidently received in this kind of corruption (NZTCC

This will compare the corruption present in five low income developing countries Bangladesh , Cambodia , Pakistan , Thailand , and South Korea . It aims to present the variation of corruption among the countries , and ultimately , present the implications of such variations

Bangladesh

Bangladesh is a country which has a population of 140 million people yet there are only 1 .5 registered taxpayers (TI , 2006 ) This indicates there is a widespread corruption , with Transparency International reporting that tax officials aid tax evaders for a hefty sum of money

Bangladesh faced corruption with its customs department , and even with the police force . In the former , researchers found out that 100 of the cases in Chittagong port tipped ' the customs officials , proving that the corruption present was already institutionalized . Importers bribed the customs officials in to take advantage of the price fluctuations in the market (TI , 2006

The corruption in the police force was no better , as 92 of complaints d in the police administration , and 80 paid bribes to get their police clearance certificates . Even the police officers themselves were involved in crimes related to corruption an incident happened when the police officer killed a person when bribe was not paid (TI , 2006

The government acted in response through the set up of the Anti-corruption commission in 2004 , but it performed below expectations There was a lack of impartiality in the selection of the three commissioners for the commission , and there were no clear rules for the appointment of the staff . The commission itself lacked organizational structure , and issues about budget and recruitment policies were not answered . It did...