This article first appeared in Cooperativa on October 14, 2017.
A few days ago, the CEP survey released the results of the July-August period, and in the consultation, what are the three problems to which the Government should dedicate the greatest effort to solve? 23% of those surveyed said that the Executive should concentrate on corruption, coming in sixth place and tying with poverty.
If we compare this measurement with the previous one made by the Centro de Estudios Públicos, there is a drop of 9 points, which suggests that people are worried about other issues such as education and health which, of course, are of utmost importance. However, we can also give it another reading.
From my point of view, the appearance in the press of issues involving corruption has a boom and then gives the impression that they disappear. This is because, according to the media, it is no longer news or there is nothing new to communicate.
Precisely, I believe that as they are not being remembered, people are forgetting the corruption crimes committed by Carabineros, for example. Therefore, if the news stops being in the media we forget the damage it does to us.
I do not want to say that these issues disappear or are made to disappear. I just want to make it clear that not because corruption crimes stop being in the press, corruption on a large and small scale stops happening. We cannot cover the sun with a finger.
I speak of large-scale corruption because of the collar and tie crimes that usually involve top executives or authorities. However, there is another type of corruption, which is the one we experience daily.
Which we commit many times without realizing it, such as not paying the Transantiago, keeping the change we are given, and presenting false medical licenses there is an investigation that reveals that 29 doctors are being investigated by the Prosecutor’s Office because they delivered more than 116 thousand licenses in a year and a half.
These and other cases reflect that there is dishonest behavior at a cultural level and that is precisely what must be changed. We must start at home, it is not justified to be dishonest or corrupt because others are dishonest or corrupt. Let the citizens who complain to the businessman for collusion set an example.
Tomorrow’s professionals appreciate that their parents are concerned about giving them an upbringing based on ethics because that is a value that is not learned at university.
By Susana Sierra
