Bribery is an act of giving money or gift giving that alters the behavior of the recipient. Bribery constitutes a crime and is defined by Black’s Law Dictionary as the offering, giving, receiving, or soliciting of any item of value to influence the actions of an official or other person in charge of a public or legal duty. The bribe is the gift bestowed to influence the recipient’s conduct. It may be any money, good, right in action, property, preferment, privilege, emolument, object of value, advantage, or merely a promise or undertaking to induce or influence the action, vote, or influence of a person in an official or public capacity.
Bribery is a crime that occurs when a person offers, gives, receives, or accepts something of value in exchange for influence over, or alteration of, another person’s behavior. The bribe itself is the gift of money or other assets, given on the basis that the recipient will act in a certain way that is contrary to what he would do in ordinary circumstance.
What is Bribery?
Bribery often occurs when a person offers money or something else of value to a public official for the purpose of gaining influence over him or her. The purpose of bribery is to exert influence or pressure over the official’s actions. Bribery is a crime for which both parties may be charged. For example, a boxer’s promoter in a largely publicized fight pays the opposing boxer to throw the match. Even though this involves a sporting event, rather than government officials, both of these individuals may be charged with bribery. It is not a requirement for the act of bribery to cause public harm for it to be charged as a crime.
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Bribery in Business
Globally, it is a common practice for employees, managers, and other people involved in a business to offer money or gifts to potential clients for the purpose of securing their business. This is not considered bribery in business, but simply the giving of gifts to sway customers to a business deal. If, on the other hand, a company official offered to have $10,000 transferred into an offshore account belonging to an OSHA inspector in order to obtain a favorable inspection report, both the company officer and the OSHA inspector would be guilty of bribery in business offenses.
Bribery and Corruption
Bribery and corruption are commonly through of in relation to politics and governmental corruption. The truth is, bribery and corruption raise their ugly heads in a broad range of circumstances, from governmental contracts, to obtaining privileges, services and favors. Sports is another arena in which bribery and corruption commonly occur. Because the very nature of bribery and corruption is secretive, the general public learns only of those few schemes in which the parties have been caught.
Punishment for Bribery
Giving and receiving bribes are both criminal offenses, usually felonies, which are often punishable by imprisonment of more than one year. Punishment for bribery often also includes fines, restitution, community service, and probation. Additionally, public officials, or employees of public agencies, who accept bribes may have to leave office, or be dismissed from their jobs for accepting bribes. They may find themselves ineligible to work in public service, or unable to work for government agencies in the future.
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Bribery Cases
Bribery has been used as a method of getting things done throughout history, and around the world. The United States and other civilized countries have enacted laws prohibiting the use of bribery to manipulate business, government, and public interest decisions. A number of bribery cases have made their way into the public eye throughout U.S. history.
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Economic analysis on the act of bribery
Arguments were based on microeconomic theories and market forces and were very detailed and clear. Some cost/benefit data illustrations were given.
关于贿赂行为的经济分析. 争论基于微观经济理论和市场力量，非常详细和明确。 给出了一些成本/效益数据说明
The results of economic analysis lead directly to ethical issues. In context of bribery effect to economic analysis is the impact of corruption on a country’s imports or exports, the impact of corruption on investment and the impact of corruption on the demands and supply in business activities. It lowers economic growth, discourages investment, and marginalizes and restricts global markets. It erodes support for economic aid and puts a heavy economic burden on the poor and lowers the standard of living of the people. Countries are concerned and are trying to combat corruption.
Supply Side and Demand Side Analysis of Bribery
As we know from basic economics, every transaction has a supply side and a demand side. Corruption or bribery is no different, the demander of a bribe is an official who has the power to offer a government contract, to issue a license, or to allocate some scarce resource, and the supplier is a business person who wants these favors.
Legal sections a target both sides, but the government’s power extends most directly over its own officials. Therefore, the demand that “the Government should act to eliminate corruption” usually means that officials who demand and take bribes should be better detected and more harshly punished by the apparatus of criminal law.
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Microeconomic Theories Analysis of Bribery
Standard microeconomic theories use various economic shocks, such as aggregate supply or demand shocks, to explain the volatility of business cycles. Some economists also use other factors, particularly the structure of a country’s financial system, to explain microeconomic volatility. When there is corruption, it is possible for bad firms to survive because of corrupt officials. If both good firms and bad firms bribe officials, social returns of investments are much lower than private returns. Social returns are even lower if only bad firms are bribing government officials. As such, social returns from bad firms are lower than social returns from good firms. In fact, when bad firms survive in an economy with corruption, social returns from bad firms are negative, although their private returns are positive. Hence, bribery clearly shows that it is an unethical action, even though by small value. Thus, bribery may effect to economic growth of country. Economic fall is synonym to bribery. Bribery also causes inflation; this will have an impact on the people of a country. The following are five simple ways in which corruption negatively impacts economic growth:
1) High prices to consumers.
When entrepreneurs and businessmen are required to pay bribes before necessary permits are issued, they tend to view it as a cost of doing business and therefore pass that cost onto consumers (that is you and me) who suffer from high prices. Thus for example when a businessman goes to take delivery of goods, all the bribes that are paid may be tacked onto the final price they would charge consumers.
2) Reduced investment leads to reduced goods and services and inflation
In extreme cases, the extortion of bribes from entrepreneurs can be seen as a tax which can reduce the incentive to invest. Foreign entrepreneurs for example will shy away from corrupt countries because they claim the cost of doing business is too high when one factors in the bribes. Reduced investment leads to reduced goods and services, a concomitant reduction in gross domestic product and inflation.
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3) Reduced foreign direct investment
According to World Bank Development (1997), FDI may still flow to countries in which corruption is systemic but only if bribery is affordable and results are predictable. Corruption can have a negative effect on foreign investment because for most foreign firms corruption is a cost of doing business to be recouped from revenues. Consequently if the costs become too high or unpredictable, they disengage or shun the country altogether. High levels of corruption increase the risk of a country being marginalized in the international economy.
4) Poor maintenance of public infrastructure
Because of corruption, maintenance and repairs always takes a back seat to new projects. For fear of being exposed, corrupt officials prefer to approve new projects rather than spend to revamp the old corrupt projects they approved in the first place. The result is that new projects are constantly being undertaken whilst existing infrastructure is left to deteriorate
5) Low quality public infrastructure
The allocation of public procurement contracts through a corrupt system leads to inferior public infrastructure and services. For example corrupt bureaucrats might allow the use of cheap sub-standard materials in the construction of buildings or bridges
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Legal analysis on the act of bribery
Arguments based on the legal framework and social forces were clear and detailed.
关于贿赂行为的法律分析. 基于法律框架和社会力量的论据是清晰和详细的。
A legal framework is a set of rules through precedent in the common law, which the judgments can be determined in a given legal case. It comes when a judge outlining and applying a rule. And it is also allowed for it to be equally applied to like cases. When there is enough judges make use of this process, then it’ll be enough for it to be establish as the right method of deciding like situations. Bribery in criminal law refers to the improper acceptance by a public official, juror, or someone bound by a duty to act impartially, of any gain or advantage to the beneficiary, including any gain or advantage to a third person by the desire or consent of the beneficiary. A gain or advantage may be a benefit in the form of money, property, commercial interests or anything else the primary significance of which is economic gain.
Case Of Bribery In Johor
“Five men have been charged in the Sessions Court with bribery under the Malaysian Anti
-Corruption Commission Act. They were charged with offering bribes of between RM50 and RM500 to Land Public Transport Commission (SPAD) officers, a traffic policeman and a Johor Bharu City Council (MBJB) officer. The bribe was an inducement for the officer not to issue him a compound for driving a tourist vehicle and one that did not have a passenger manifest.”
There are some examples of this framework (Legal Framework).
1. Framework breach. This term is defined as well-known type of breach which entitles the innocent party to treat it as repudiator and to rescind the contract. In this case, the men who were charged for the bribery, had offered the innocent party – SPAD officers, a traffic policeman ;
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And a MBJB officer – as an inducement for the officers not to issue them a compound.
The officers are called as the innocent party, and the men who being charged are the men who want to breach the contract. But in any cases where there are people who want to involve in this activity are also involve in corruption or bribery.
2. Laches. It is defined as the loss of rights because of failure to act. For example, when the people who are involved in bribery are fail to act against the law being charged to them. From this case of bribery, these men who were charged on act of bribery failed to defense themselves from the charged. Or if they try to bring it up into the court, the court maybe refuse to hear a case not brought before it after a lengthy period since the right of action arose.
3. Substantial performance is the rules of law that may be apply where the contract has been substantially being performed before the breach is happen. In this case of bribery, if the officers are trying to accept the money, then they are involved with this type of legal framework.
Social forces are defined as the power (force) from the society that is capable to change the cultural ideas or influencing people. From the act of bribery, sometimes the people who are involved in this case are not being forced by the society, or the society do not teach on why the bribery are not legal. It is a public opinion, media or trend that will change politics. This case of bribery has been made into the media, a newspaper in this country.
1. Public opinion. We as the society have the right to give our opinion in this case. When we see or know some people are involved with bribery or corruption, we can talk with them or ask them the reason they want to give or take the bribe. Maybe we can slow talk with them. For example, the above case of bribery shows that these people want bribe the officers but they did not want to consult first about the procedure, so then they may not being issued the compound.
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2. Media. The richness of media publicity can indirectly give the lesson to us or especially the people who are involve with corruption. From this case, the media (newspaper) publish about this case. So, when we as the society read the news, then we might be aware on not being involved with this bribery.
So, it is important for us and possible to look at each of the problems that have an ethical content through the framework of legal theory, and relying on the impersonal social forces to decide between “right” and “wrong”. If people and organizations follow these rules, members of that society will be treated as justly as possible.
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Ethical analysis on the act of bribery
Arguments based on FOUR ethical theories were clearly provided.
关于贿赂行为的伦理分析. 明确提供了基于四个伦理理论的论点。
Meaning of Ethics
What is ethics?
Ethics can generally be defined as the principles of morally acceptable conduct of individuals. Ethics also means an individual personal beliefs about right and wrong behaviors.
Five major theories with direct relevance to managerial decisions
Ethical Principles
The universal recognition that we owe something to other people within our society, and that we are bound by a concept of right and wrong in our behavior to those people, has to be made operational. We have to establish some consistent analytical methods of classifying our action as right or wrong.
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If we cannot, it is not due to lack of trying. As indicated earlier, intellectual history over the past 2,400 years is filled with attempts to justify moral standards and establish ethical systems. None of it is perfect but there are at least five major theories that do have a direct relevance to managerial decisions.
Let us look at the explanations provided for these theories in the following sections.
1. Eternal Law Theory (Natural Law)
Eternal law is natural law and not changes. It is law from Allah for Muslim and for non-Muslim, they has law from their god. For example of act bribery today is many people do bribery but they hide it with give donation, gift, hamper, and food trick. They do it because in Islam, bribery is forbidden and illegal law of Islam. But donation, gift, hamper, and food trick is not illegal.
Although this simple definition communicates the essence of ethics, three implications warrant additional consideration:
(a) Ethics is individually defined. People have ethics whereas organizations do not;
(b) What constitutes ethical behavior can vary from one person to another; and
(c) Ethics is relative; it is not absolute. This means ethical behavior usually conforms to generally accept social norms.
2. Classical Teleological Ethical Theory: Utilitarianism
Theory “the greatest good for the greatest number”. It mean when you doing something, you think it good for many people. But not think about another person. For example when a person has a power and give bribery to another person to get a tender job for their employee get work and get income. So he used a theory utilitarianism to get that job.
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What is wrong with utilitarianism? Not much, except for the possibility of exploitation. In the vast majority of cases, where no one is going to be hurt badly, and particularly where it is possible to use financial equivalents for both the costs and the benefits, it is a familiar and useful form of analysis. However, there is always the possibility of justifying benefits for the great majority of the population by imposing sacrifices or penalties on a small minority.
Utilitarianism fails because of these factors:
(a) In reality, it is about these two principles: the greatest good and the greatest number. At some point in our decision-making on important matters, these two principles come into conflict. Then, we have no single means of determining what is the right or proper act.
(b) We can probably agree that there are some actions that are simply wrong, despite great apparent net benefits for a huge majority. For example, killing an innocent child to bring happiness to the whole human race. No one should ever have to accept that kind of cruel act.
(c) It is impossible to balance the benefits of the majority against the sacrifices of a minority.
3. Classical Deontological Ethical Theory: Universalism
Universalism is can be translate into personal duties or obligation. It is mean when you doing something, you do about what you think right without think outcome. For example bribery is when you a policeman take bribery from your superior to make you shut your mouth when superior do bad job. Then you use theory universalism because if you do not accept bribery, you will fired. So you accept and you not think what outcome can happen.
The deontological theory states that the moral worth of an action cannot be dependent upon the outcome because these outcomes are so indefinite and uncertain at the time of the decision to act is made. The moral worth of an action has to instead depend upon the intentions of the person making the decision or performing the act.
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If you wish the best for others, then your moral actions are praiseworthy, even if you happen to be an unimpressive and clumsy individual who often seems to be doing the wrong thing. Therefore, these good intentions will usually result in beneficial outcomes.
Personal intentions can be translated into personal duties or obligations because if we truly wish the best for others, then we will always act in certain ways to ensure beneficial results. Those ways become duties that are compulsory upon us rather than choices that are open to us. Our personal duties are universal, applicable to everyone and consequently much of deontological theory is also termed as universalism. The first duty of universalism is to treat others as ends and not as means. Other people should be seen as valuable ends in themselves, worthy of dignity and respect, and not as impersonal means to achieve our own means. No action can be considered right in accordance with personal duty if it disregards the ultimate moral worth of any other human being.
What is wrong with universalism?
(a) It is a useful method of moral reasoning but there are no priorities and no degrees.
(b) It is difficult to treat others as ends and not as means all the time, particularly when many serve as means to our personal ends. For example, storekeepers are means of procuring our groceries, customers are our means of earning our livelihood and employees are the means of staffing our factories.
4. Distributive Justice Theory
Belief in the primacy of justice will lead us to make decisions and take actions that are expected to result in compensating benefits for all, especially the least advantaged member of our society. For example is when someone innocent want you help him to win in court. Furthermore, you also friend with judge in this case. Then you give him bribery in help you win this case and help someone innocent.
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Neither of the two classical theories mentioned above, utilitarianism or universalism, can be used to judge all moral actions under all circumstances. Consequently, two modern ethical systems have been developed that are based upon values rather than principles. Justice is felt to be the first virtue of social institutions, just as truth is the first virtue of systems of thought.
John Rawls proposes (1971) that society and the institutions within it are marked by these two elements:
(a) Collaboration
Collaboration comes about since individuals recognize that joint actions generate much greater benefits than solitary efforts.
(b) Conflict
Conflict is inevitable because people are concerned with the just distribution of gained benefits. Each person prefers a greater to a lesser share, as well as a system of distribution that ensures the greater share to himself.
These distributive systems can have very different bases to each person equally, or to each according to his need, effort, contribution or competence.
Most modern economic systems make use of all five principles: equal, need, effort, contribution and competence. For instance, public education is, theoretically speaking, distributed equally, welfare payments on the basis of need, sales commissions on effort, public honors on contribution, and managerial salaries on competence.
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People would not normally select absolute equality in the distribution of benefits.
This is because they recognize that some of them would put forth greater effort, have higher skills and so on. They would also not agree to absolute inequality based upon effort, skill or competence because they would not know who among them have those qualities and consequently who among them should receive more or less benefits. Instead, they would develop a concept of conditional inequality, where differences in benefits have to be justified. They would propose a rule to ensure that these differences in benefits be justified only if they are shown to result in compensating benefits for everyone, particularly the most disadvantaged members of their society.
5. Personal Liberty Theory
The theory of personal liberty is an ethical system proposed by Robert Nozick (1974).This system is based upon the primacy of a single value rather than a single principle: liberty. Liberty is thought to be the first requirement of society. An institution or law that violates individual liberty has to be rejected even if it may result in greater happiness and increased benefits for others.
Personal liberty can be expanded from a market system for the exchange of holdings to an ethical system for the evaluation of behavior. Individuals must be allowed to make informed choices among alternative courses of action leading towards their own welfare. These choices would be considered just, right or proper as long as the same opportunities for informed choices are extended to others. Justice depends upon equal opportunities for choice and exchange, not upon equal allocations of wealth and income.
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Conclusion
The conclusion on the outcome of the analysis was detailed and complete.
对分析结果的结论是详细和完整的.
While a bribe is the same thing given in the hope of influence or benefits. Bribes can be money, actual things, and tickets to support events, sponsors, restaurant meals and travel.
According to the Black’s Law Dictionary, the most widely used law dictionary in the United States, bribery is an act of giving money or gift giving that alters the behavior of the recipient and it can constitutes a crime.
Many initiatives have been implemented to encourage integrity and transparency as part of the National Key Result Areas (NKRA) goal of fighting corruption under the Government Transformation Program (GTP). Establishment of compliance units in key enforcement agencies such as MACC, RMP, RTD, Customs and Immigration to verify compliance of laws and procedures, ensure Hot Job Rotation, reduce bureaucracy and conduct integrity testing on officers.
The Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) is an organization created solely for the purpose of eradicating corruption. The main rule of the MACC is to build upon trust and faith as it executes the responsibilities necessary to extinguish corruption.
NKRA also do “Name and Shame” offender database on MACC website www.sprm.gov.my on 4th March 2010. The main objective is to create awareness and as a prevention measure to stop individuals from engaging in corrupt practices. Next, they will work hard to complete of the corruption case trials within one year.
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In addition, NKRA has made a few initiatives but still in progress. Firstly, NKRA will participate with INTAN, JPA and MOF whereby to identify officers in procurement jobs and send for mandatory training. Then, the other initiative is to improve on political financing.
There is study has been carried out, three elements had identified and should be implemented. There are fund donated must be in the party’s name not individual’s, fund donated also must be recorded and issued a receipt and lastly, party’s account is subject to audit.
Lastly, many international institutions and organizations have agreed to cooperate with Malaysia in developing anti-corruption programs, including conducting the courses, trainings, seminars, and workshops yearly that will provide to the Asia-Pacific region.
The Malaysia Anti-Corruption Academy (MACA) was the responsible organization to make sure the competency and professionalism of MACC officers. MACA also conducted the 24-month Master’s Program, which is suitable for anti-corruption professionals, police officers, judges and other enforcement agency officers. The program addresses corruption from assorted perspectives, and involved participants from all five continents and all areas.
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References
References
http://www.academia.edu/6737124/Ethical_analysis_on_bribery
http://www.oecd.org/regreform/regulatory-policy/1898295.pdf
https://www.adb.org/sites/default/files/institutional-document/33788/files/cost-benefit-analysis-development.pdf
https://prezi.com/0ko59w-unpzy/bribery-in-malaysia/
http://www.iaaca.org/AntiCorruptionAuthorities/ByCountriesandRegions/M/Malaysiajigou/201202/t20120210_802395.shtml
http://scholarship.law.upenn.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=3659&context=penn_law_review
http://www.nortonrosefulbright.com/knowledge/publications/121097/business-ethics-and-anti-corruption-laws-malaysia
http://legaldictionary.net/bribery/
http://www.todayonline.com/world/asia/businesses-more-corrupt-1-3-msians-face-bribes-next-two-years-survey
http://www.worldfinance.com/comment/a-history-of-bribery
http://www.business-anti-corruption.com/country-profiles/malaysia
http://www.sprm.gov.my/index.php/en/ace/knowledge/industry/construction/case-studies
http://www.ey.com/my/en/newsroom/news-releases/news-ey-malaysian-government-and-companies-to-combat-bribery-and-corruption
http://www.smh.com.au/national/bribery-scandal-linked-to-malaysian-prime-minister-najib-razak-20150713-gib8nr.html