President Mohammad Ashraf Ghani says the offspring of poor people pay the price of corruption in the country as Afghanistan Integrity Watch (IWA) terms the phenomenon central to Afghanistan’s challenges.
Speaking at a gathering to mark the International Anti-Corruption Day, Ghani said corruption and injustice prevent enforcement of constitution, which leads to poverty and insecurity.
“In the past, the university entry exam also known as Kankor was an example of corruption. Tens of our youth committed suicide and thousands others were disappointed by fraud in the examination. The price of all these injustices and corruption is being paid by offspring of poor people,” Ghani said.
Despite challenges Ghani, however, said that Afghanistan has made tangible achievements in the fight against corruption.
“Billions of dollars poured in Afghanistan after 9/11, why wasn’t our water controlled, why weren’t our roads built, why didn’t we have infrastructure? It is because we didn’t manage the money, we preferred personal interests to national ones,” Ghani said.
The president said that he was committed to eradicating corruption, as he cited reforms in institutions in different sectors of the country.
He also called for setting a special annual day to praise corruption fighters.
“Now we have tangible achievements and they should be commended,” Ghani said.
He said that employing youths was a way of fight against corruption.
In the meantime, an IWA survey shows that corruption remains at the core of Afghanistan’s challenges, urging the government to focus on long-term anti-graft efforts.
The survey released on Saturday has found some slight progress in Afghanistan’s general situation since 2016, with limited room for optimism.
In the 2018 biennial survey, 61 percent of respondents stated they were either ‘very satisfied’ or ‘somewhat satisfied’ with the situation in their home provinces, compared to 54 percent in 2016.
In terms of progress made over the past 12 months, respondents in the Northeast and Central Highlands, where the government has stronger representation and greater influence — as well as the Southern region which, in contrast is traditionally a Taliban stronghold—are the most positive.
