Corruption is recognized as one of the major barriers to development since ancient times. Corruption has become the topic of more focus with intensive research being undertaken in the past few years considering its effect on developing economies. Companies in developed nations are increasingly investing in developing countries in order to access their low-cost labor and to have access to other markets. They invest in these countries because of the large population base which presents as a place for future growth. As the firms and managers continue to invest, they come into direct contact with corruption. They encounter new challenges that they had never experienced in their home countries. These individuals can attest that corruption is present and is one of the biggest challenges in many developing countries. Honduras is an example of such a country where the biggest problem is corruption. The country’s military, government, and key business people have often been implicated in cases of corruption. This raises the question about the legitimacy of its leaders in the administration of the nation. This paper shall briefly review the country’s presidency and leadership in corruption before discussing how the legal system has been undermined to discredit the country’s leadership.
Corruption is the single greatest problem that Honduras faces. All Hondurans can attest to the fact that corruption is the root of all problems. The country experiences several other problems as a result of corruption. For instance, the country’s education system has been in a bad state and there have been constant strikes by unpaid teachers. Corruption has severe effects on the country’s economy and society. Other problems in the country such as high crime rates, poor health care, and poor transportation services can be attributed to corruption. Corruption is in all sectors of the society, especially within government institutions. It runs all the way from the top ministerial positions to public employees.
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Corruption has been labeled as one of the primary barriers to economic development and equality in different parts of the world. The presence of corruption undermines the leadership since individuals can use power unlawfully. This is no different for the case of Honduras. Honduras stands out in terms of corruption because its prevalence in the country is severe. The country’s government, military, and key business individuals are often caught in corruption cases that affect the operation of the country.
The country’s presidency involvement in corruption
The office of the president or other administrative offices in any country are usually the first symbols of power, equality, and national unity that has been set up to protect the rights of its citizens. In any democratic state, the citizens are the primary determinants of power holders. They can ensure that the individuals that hold the public offices are ready to fight corruption. The power is accorded to the president and country’s leadership in the hopes that they will exercise their power in office for the benefit of its citizens. However, in case the president is linked to cases of corruption, this discredits the entire leadership and shows that the president is serving his or her own agenda and not the agenda of its citizens. Corruption is unlawful and the implication of the country’s presidency in any form of corruption would destroy the leadership credibility of a country. Honesty is one of the critical factors required by the leadership so that they can progress both economically and socially.
The country’s president has been found in numerous corruption cases leading to questioning the legitimacy of the country’s top leadership. The president of Honduras has been accused by several individuals and collaborators to have diverted millions of dollars of public money to serve his political ambitions. One accusation is that President Juan Orlando Hernandez’s 2013 campaign was funded through public funds. Asman (2018) wrote about the involvement of the presidency in corruption where the presidency diverted millions of dollars of public money for political reasons. The president is alleged to have stolen public funds that were designed for agricultural projects. The projects were funded from non-governmental organizations and foundations. Part of the funds were also used by the then candidate Hernández to run a political program called “Cachureca Card.” The program was politically motivated as it allowed cardholders to be able to receive sizeable discounts as they participated in businesses. Some of those funds were used to support political campaigns for other smaller parties.
The country’s president has used the country’s military for his ambitions which raises the question of whether the presidency was acquired legitimately. The country’s leader has been accused to run his political ambitions on dictatorship and violence. According to Cervantes (2018), Juan Orlando Hernandez stole the election and the country has been completely militarized. After the stealing of the elections in November 2017, there is a reported number of 34 individuals that were killed by the police and the military. The country’s president has made use of the military illegally in order to destabilize the country during the elections. This raises the question of whether he acquired the presidency legitimately through fair elections or forcefully through the use of the military.
The breaking of the law by the presidency in order to serve his interests raises the question of whether the presidency was acquired and retained legitimately. Flores (2013) describes how absolute power by the country’s presidency has made the president break the law leading to misuse of the country’s presidential seat. It is widely expected that the President of any democratic state should play a big role in ensuring the interests of the country are served. However, in case the President breaks the law, it impossible to believe that a system would be in place that could ensure the president is removed from power. Another instance of breaking the law is in the organization of a coup. The organization of a coup by the country leaders raises questions about the constitutional legitimacy of the presidency.
Corruption among other top leaders in the country.
Apart from the country’s presidency involvement in corruption, other leaders in the country have been involved in corruption allegations which raise questions on the validity of the election of the country’s top leaders. Erust and Malkin (2018) note how corruption among the country’s Elites leadership has fought the anti-corruption commission in Honduras. After various cases of corruption in Honduras, an international anti-corruption commission in Honduras was set up against lawmakers in the country. However, the commission came under attack from the country’s top leadership and lawmakers that shut down the commission. This was because the inquiry produced a case against 38 officials and politicians in the country. The implication of the country’s leadership in corruption raises questions about the validity of the elections in the country that was held in 2013.
The investigation on the corruption of various leaders in Honduras established that more than 282 million lempiras, an equivalent of $12 million of government funds, had been misused. Some of the funds had been used to fund political campaigns to influence the decision of the public (Ernst and Malkin, 2018). These actions undermine other leaders in the country that may not be adequately equipped or funded in order to run their political campaigns. Legitimate leaders that have the country’s interest’s interest at heart cannot compete with other political leaders that have their campaigns heavily funded. This indicates that the country’s leadership is illegitimate since they do not gain political positions honestly but do so through underhand methods.
Corruption in Honduras has been fueled by a strong network that was established by the country’s leaders. Different people in the country that have been involved in corruption cases include business executives, government officials, and even street-level bribe payers. A study by Chayes (2017) showed that corruption is the operating system in the country and has been established and well laid through sophisticated networks that link the private and public networks. The establishment of the networks ensures that the country’s top leadership position is held by individuals in the networks who are also corrupt. This shows that the country’s top leaders are not elected through fair elections but are determined by individuals that are present in the political networks.
Misconduct among the country’s top leadership led to deadly corruption killings of various protestors in Honduras. Berta Cáceres was killed after a campaign against the construction of the dam on a river that is sacred to the people of Lenca. After the killing, a large team of international lawyers found that her death had been planned for several months. The United States put pressure on the Honduran government to solve the case. Various individuals have been arrested, one of them being the chief executive of the company that was building the dam (The Editorial Board, 2018). This shows that the leadership is ready to do anything to advance their ambitions even when it could mean committing murder. Other government officials, military, and business elites were also linked to the case. Several other killings that involve protestors shows that Honduras is one of the deadliest countries for environmental activities.
Corruption among the country’s top leadership was identified by United States military officials. They noticed that Honduras had a significantly high level of corruption and violence. Top leaders were found to run the country through violence and intimidation and not through fairness, equality, and the constitution. There is an increasingly huge among of protests in Honduras against corruption scandals involving top leaders. The country’s leaders, however, undermine a free press and a civil society. Satterfield (2015) notes that one of the ways which corruption can be solved in Honduras is through collaboration and working with the United States. This will ensure the gradual establishment of a transparency, accountability, free press, and supporting unions in the country.
Bias in the legal system
The judiciary system is highly inadequate and ineffective which raises the question of whether the country’s presidency can be challenged by the country’s courts. A report on corruption in Honduras showed that the government’s anti-corruption framework that was put in place is highly ineffective. The enforcement by the commission is lacking and several cases reveal that there is widespread impunity in the region. Additionally, corruption occurrences in the country have not been solved. The judicial system suffers from having a poorly trained staff, ineffectiveness, underfunding, political influence, intimidating pressures from political leaders, and high levels of corruption. Irregular payments and bribes are the norms in the courts as individuals try to sway the decisions made by the courts (“Honduras Corruption Report”, 2016). The courts are highly inefficient in trying to settle disputes and cannot challenge any regulations made by the government.
The police ought to be the center of promoting fairness and equality in society. When the police are corrupt, they serve the agenda of the politicians through bribery. Many leaders can thus enforce themselves through leadership positions by bribing the police. Corruption and impunity have been widely reported among police officers in Honduras. The officers engage in abuse of power and extortion. They cannot be relied upon to enforce the law or to be able to protect companies from corruption. The result has been high crimes and increased violence in the country causing several individuals to abandon their businesses. The increased prevalence of corruption among the police officers saw the president declare corruption within the police as a national emergency. An anticorruption commission enforced its laws and suspended approximately 30 deputy commissioners for an alleged collusion and links with organized crimes.
Honduras tried to set up a legal anti-corruption framework in order to improve the legitimacy of the country’s top leadership. The Penal Code and Penal Procedures Code were created to criminalize active and passive bribery. However, the body faced an increasingly huge amount of challenges and it was regulated by public officials and the government. Another body that was set up to fight corruption was the Mission against Corruption and Impunity in Honduras (MACCIH) as a result of mass protests in the country against corruption. The MACCIH was made up of a team of international prosecutors and judges tasked with advising, supervising, and advising Honduran authorities in trying to curb corruption. However, the body was undermined as they did not find support from Honduran prosecutors and judges. The body also faced significant political pressures from political leaders and individuals that held various government positions.
Freedom of press and speech is usually provided for by the law. However, the bias in the legal system means that some individuals face restrictions which limits journalists from reporting on abuses and corruption by the authorities. The country’s leadership undermines the press to hide the fact that their leadership is illegitimate. Powerful business individuals have been found to monopolize and influence the attention of the media. While access to information of the government is provided by law, it is actually limited in practice. Journalists face government intimidation and many journalists encounter several challenges. There have also been corrupt journalists who report biased information that favors politicians. In general, the media environment in Honduras has been considered that it is not free. Leaders in the country manipulate the media so that they can hide their malpractice. This shows that the country’s leadership is illegitimate since they try to undermine the media to hide their practices.
Honduras congress has been found to be undermined because the president has excessive power which he uses to run the country. The president can thus influence various laws and proceedings which ensure that he can continually remain in power. This shows that the country’s leadership can pass its agenda forcefully. The president of Congress, who is directly under the influence of the president, is in charge of all proceedings in the Congress. He or she can lay the ground rules and state who can speak and for how long regarding a specific agenda (Rotberg, 2017). In case the country’s leadership was legitimate, then the president would have let the country’s congress run in a free and fair environment without much influence.
Corruption has grown to become the country’s operating system and it is virtually impossible for fairness to prevail in the countries electoral procedures. The electoral process in Honduras has been undermined as a result of the influence of government officials and the presidency. Individuals that are in charge of elections in the country have been accused of bribery to serve the interests of political leaders. Many citizens in Honduras thus do not trust the electoral process. The presidency has been accused by the opposition to have engaged in electoral malpractice. However, since the legal and judiciary system in the country is weak, the presidency remains untouched and his power cannot be questioned.
A study by Call (2018) analyzed one of the ways which the issue of corruption can be solved in Honduras. The study found that strengthening the country’s legal system is one of the ways to ensure the country’s leadership is legitimate. A strong legal system would ensure that corruption, the root of all problems for Honduras, would end. Rotberg (2017) also notes that one of the ways corruption can be fought is through strengthening the political leadership and their willingness to create a culture that fights corruption. The establishment of laws on prosecution may also help in ensuring that the legal framework of the country is effective in fighting corruption.
Conclusion
Corruption in Honduras undermines the legitimacy of the country’s leadership. The president has been found in several cases of corruption regarding the stealing of public funds in order to fund his presidential campaigns. The country’s top leadership have been found to be implicated in several corruption cases. Some of the leaders have been involved in the assassination of individuals that oppose them. The legal system of Honduras is also weak and cannot challenge the elections of the presidency adequately. The country’s judicial system also faces interference from politicians as they try to influence decisions made by the courts to their advantage. The country can solve its problems of corruption by establishing a strong legal system to ensure the prosecution of all leaders that are faced with allegations of corruption.
References
Asman, P. (2018) "Honduras Anti-Corruption Probe Implicates President, Opposition.". Retrieved from www.insightcrime.org/news/analysis/honduras-anti-corruption-probe-implicates-president-opposition/ .
Call, C. (2018). From Steady Progress to Severely Wounded: A Two-Year Report on the Performance of the Oas Mission in Support of the Fight Against Corruption and Impunity in Honduras.
Chayes, S. (2017). When corruption is the operating system: the case of Honduras . Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.
Cervantes, V. (2018). Honduras: Dictatorship and Violence: US Support for Repression & Fraud. Against the Current , 33 (1), 14-15.
Ernst, J., and E. Malkin. (2018) "In a Corruption Battle in Honduras, the Elites Hit Back." Retrieved from www.nytimes.com/2018/07/01/world/americas/honduras-corruption-hernandez.html .
Flores, S. (2013). Absolute Power in Honduras, Does It Always Corrupt Absolutely?
"Honduras Corruption Report." (2016). Business Anti-Corruption Portal . Retrieved from www.business-anti-corruption.com/country-profiles/honduras/ .
Rotberg, R. I. (2017). The corruption cure: How citizens and leaders can combat graft . Princeton University Press.
Satterfield, D. (2015). Corruption and Leaders (Part 4): Honduras. Retrieved from https://www.theleadermaker.com/corruption-and-leaders-part-4-honduras/
The Editorial Board. (2018) "Opinion | Deadly Corruption in Honduras." (2018) The New York Times - Breaking News, World News & Multimedia , Retrieved from www.nytimes.com/2018/03/13/opinion/honduras-corruption-berta-caceres.html
