WHEN I GROW UP, I WANT TO BE CORRUPT

‘So today, I want you children to tell me what you want to do when you grow up’ the pupil teacher asked. Instead of the dead silence and stone faces that he is usually met with any time he poses a question, this time the class bursts to life with raised hands and murmurs all over. One by one, when called upon to speak, the children (without the faintest idea of the effort needed to make that dream come true) blurt out the supposed admirable professions they have heard of.  Doctor, lawyer, engineer, pilot; the expected answers continue till the turn of one quiet boy who barely has his hand lifted but is called upon to speak anyway. He rises and puts the whole class into shock as the words fall quietly from his lips like a whisper, ‘when I grow up, I want to be corrupt’.

Despite how absurd this might sound to most of you, it is exactly what pops into my head now whenever I am asked of my future aspirations. You might say I am just trying to be funny or that I should be realistic with my answer. Believe me or not, this is as real as it gets in Ghana and most developing countries I have observed.

Our society’s theory of needs is like this; go to school so that you can get a good job, build a house, get a car and raise a family. Basically, get educated so you become successful and attain societal prominence with the knowledge you acquire. Emphasis is not placed on what is being studied and how it can be applied to solve problems, but on financial gains that come after studies.

This, like it or not, is the fundamental recipe for corruption which has deeply engulfed our workplaces (especially the government sector). How? Well since we are all fed with this idea before and during our time in school, we tend to do everything we can to ensure we make it to the end of our schooling, whether or not we have truly learnt something. Talk of individuals that have been able to make it all the way to the end, bribing and cheating their way through exams. And not forgetting ‘chew and pour’, an intellectual crime we can all admit to be guilty of committing.

My desire now dear reader is not to argue which practice is right or not, but to reveal the importance we place on passing exams rather than actually acquiring knowledge. I have issues with how we are given questions to answer, rather than problems to solve during exams too but that issue can wait for another post.

How do you expect a person who has yearned so much to complete education and become financially successful to behave, when all he or she is given is a meagre salary at the end of every month. Money is the reason for being in that position, not any problem that needs to be solved. So if the money is not coming, and other ways (talking about corruption) are considered, can the individual be blamed? I believe that any step taken by any government against corruption is good, but without addressing these issues raised, all the measures become nothing but a lost cause.

Am I then saying that parents, with the reasons why they educate their wards, tend to breed corruption in infants? Definitely! But not entirely considering our society and its economic hardships. Education is a light in a very dark tunnel in our part of the world, and it’s no surprise they run to this light to escape this darkness. It is thus the responsibility of you, the one being educated, to realise this misconception and study with the right reasons in mind.

Dear reader, it seems my talk has been kind of long today, but let me beg your forgiveness; for this matter is one that is very dear to my heart. If we are serious about doing something about corruption, let’s help change the mindset of students all around, starting first with ourselves.And to you having doubts, having in mind the hope your family has in you as their financial redeemer after education, I have just one advice for you. It’s a quote from the movie ‘3 IDIOTS’ and I paraphrase, ‘Seek excellence, and success will follow you’. We are in school to learn and not so we can succeed financially in life. For if that is your reason, then know that many(and i mean a lot) have done it without education, so think again!