Transparency International’s (TI) has announced the list of Corruption Perceptions Index 2016 which stated that over two-thirds of the 176 countries and territories in this year’s index fall below the midpoint of its scale of 0 (highly corrupt) to 100 (very clean), with Singapore being placed seventh on the list.
The Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) was established in 1995 as a composite indicator used to measure perceptions of corruption in the public sector in different countries around the world.
It noted that this year’s results highlight the connection between corruption and inequality, which feed off each other to create a vicious circle between corruption, unequal distribution of power in society, and unequal distribution of wealth.
However, one should note that this index measures perception of corruption in public bodies. It does not cover whether is there actual corruption taking place in the public bodies nor legalised corruption such as paying public staff ridiculously high wages under the guise of preventing corruption to gain their loyalty.
Using data from a list of the world’s billionaires and their worth published by Forbes, the report labels each individual as crony or not based on the source of their wealth. Industries that have a lot of interaction with the state are vulnerable to crony capitalism.
