Mai Guan

Early last week, I read an article written by Malcolm Moore entitled, “Corruption starts early in China,” with a sub-lead “Government jobs pay a great deal more-–if you can afford to buy them.” It told about a 28-year old office worker who paid $29,000 to get a job as a policeman in Inner Mongolia. Why policeman and why Mongolia? The answer was, “The job is stable and there is profit in it. The cops in the bureau all have houses and possessions that do not match their salaries.”

The article said that corruption in the Communist Party “runs from the billions allegedly amassed by the families of top leaders all the way down to the lowliest state employees.” The scathing report said the phase “mai guan” or “buying a job” has entered the Chinese dictionary as it has contaminated the Chinese lifestyle.

Later in the week, Xi Jinping, who assumed the leadership of the Communist Party and the nation, while acknowledging the economic might of China in the world, said in a speech broadcast worldwide, “There are also many pressing problems within the party that need to be resolved, particularly corruption. We must make every effort to solve these problems.”

When China hid behind the bamboo curtain, communism carried a mystical aura that led many brilliant and idealistic youths to fight revolutions in their respective countries. A utopian state where the people held the power, and that the resources of the nation were distributed equally to all was too difficult to resist. No privilege class, no corruption.

How many of these idealists died for a cause; and still there are those who dream that communism is the elixir that will end poverty for the farmers, fishers and those exploited by the ruling class.

But then, with the opening of the doors of China, the mystique of communism has been shattered. The admission by Xi Jinping reveals the sad truth that even with high ideals dishonest people will look for opportunities to enrich themselves at the expense of the state, at the expense of the people.

Whether one lives in a capitalist society, a socialist nation or a communist state, corruption persists as it does in dictatorial regimes. Graft and corruption are two-headed monsters that thrive even in the most admired societies. “Meanwhile, the wrong-doer must persist in his deeds of wrong, the corrupt in his corruption, the just man in winning his justification, the holy in his life of holiness. Patience, I am coming soon; and with me comes the award I make, repaying each man according to the life he has lived.” (Apocalypse 22:11-13)

Some governments are able to rein these in through good governance, exemplary leadership and punishment for wrongdoers. But the key actually begins within families, within homes, within the heart of each individual. “You deserve honesty from the heart; yes, utter sincerity and truthfulness. Oh give me this wisdom.” (Psalm 51:6)

by Mel Libre