The recent protests by young people in Kenya and Uganda have highlighted a form of corruption that is difficult to deal with: political corruption.
Compared to its cousin, administrative or bureaucratic corruption (such as a civil servant soliciting a bribe to provide a public service), political corruption is much more difficult to fight. This is because it is perpetrated by people who hold political power and influence. This class can fight back. Corruption gives them both the incentive and the means to hold on to power.
Political corruption takes place at the highest levels of the political system. It involves decision-makers who have the power to define the “rules of the game” and to make the laws. They include politicians elected (or nominated) to parliament, government ministers and politically nominated senior civil servants.
