The Corruption Conversation is either tired or we are tired of it

On a chilly Tuesday evening in the upscale suburb of Kololo, it is an event that is familiar to those in attendance. One that has outlived the presidential campaign of its chief protagonist even when many thought it was only strategically made for the season.

The territory and location is familiar but unlike previously when we had our engagements in the spaces on the ground floor, this time we had to move a few feet high. No coincidence, it is only those who like to over-think that would relate the nature of discussion expected to the few steps that we were obliged to scale.

There are definitely new faces in the crowd as always, trying to feel comfortable and yet striving not to discomfort others, adjusting to the set up and yet struggling not to look lost. But there is no complexity in all this, just a group of advocates and those intending to be gathered on an evening out, sharing experiences over a cup of coffee. A guest is usually invited to share their experience from far and wide with a group of mostly the young people, eager to listen.

The guest of this particular day is familiar, atleast to the audience. He is not a media darling and neither is he a social media person but he is someone that has appended his signature to numerous decisions, made orders to various effects and sat as an arbiter in tones of cases as a judge of the High Court in Uganda. Justice Yasin Nyanzi, a Judge attached to the Criminal Division of the High Court, in charge of juvenile justice was our guest speaker. In a low and almost inaudible tone, he spoke a lot about his humble background, the primary school where he went to and how it was never on the grid of recognized schools in the country, the sacrifices he made to be able to move from one class to another. But despite all odds, he remained resilient and steadfast, for us who saw him that evening, he stood tall on the platform in front of us, accomplished in every sense of the word and you could not help but simply admire what the man had become.

On every such day, a topic for discussion is laid out and like a careful navigator; the guest speaker guides us through. It was a turn to discuss corruption.  For every one of us, this is something that has been discussed, mentioned in passing, pondered in the dead of the night or even been a part of. But like Justice Nyanzi pointed out, it is a thing that has existed from the time of Adam and Eve, lived through generations, is stuck with us and will not be shy to pass it on to the generations that will come after us.

As expected he talked about the different forms in which corruption manifests, from the small favors to dishonesty, to blackmail, bribery and preferential treatment. For many of these we knew, had probably experienced or were part of but the standout was his personal story. As a judge of the courts of judicature of Uganda, the temptation to be drawn in either of the above is huge. People have grown not to have any trust in their judicial officers. But Justice Nyanzi went on record to say that for all his time as a judicial officer, he had never attempted to take a bribe knowingly or unknowingly. “I leave within my means but most importantly I want to leave a legacy of honesty.” It was heart-warming.

As he summed up the evening, he rallied us to be passionate fighters against corruption, because if blame is to be rationed out, when all has been said and done we shall have only ourselves to blame. In the minds of mortals, this is an impossible goal to achieve but there are no limits to humanity, we can be bad but we can be good and very good too.

This conversation may be tired or we may even be tired of having it but in our small ways we can do something about it!

Blessed week ahead!