The discourse of the endemic grand corruption in Nigeria is inadequate without a critical scrutiny of the roles played by the multinational companies (MNCs) in facilitating and sustaining grand corruption. Scholars argue that companies, especially multinationals, are the biggest perpetrators using a sophisticated network of notional companies and corporate structure to facilitate corrupt practices in developing countries. In essence, grand corruption in Nigeria is to a large extent sustained by the involvement and collusion of multinational corporations operating within and outside Nigeria. The quest for global expansion, global competition and profit maximisation underscores the multinational corporations’ exploitation of the vulnerable endemic corrupt administrations in Africa by offering huge bribes. Leslie Wayne states that ‘as business has gone global, so has graft, particularly as companies in rich nations push into poorer regions’. The World Bank estimates that about $1 trillion in bribes is paid annually to government officials. Jeffrey M. Kaplan, a U.S lawyer who specialises in cases brought under the Foreign Corrupt Act, comments that ‘you are talking about millions of dollars going to dictators who are selling their national patrimony in countries where you cannot even get clean water’. Kaplan argues, ‘bribery is endemic to the human condition. If it cannot be rooted out, then you need to do something, and the FCPA, is that’. This underscores why proper
The Progress movement or as many refer to as the Progressive era, was a time frame where Americans joined in varying groups to advocate reform across the United States. To elaborate, Progressives believed in widespread change for child labor, industrialization, government, racial reform, and women’s rights. Countless stories of corruption in these areas were brought to light in the Progressive era mostly due to the published writings of Muckrakers. Muckrakers, were journalists who wrote for popular magazines that attempted to expose corrupt political activities from their investigative journalism. Furthermore, I will discuss and compare these groups and their attempts for changes in the rights of child labor, women, acknowledgment of corrupt government practices, racial relations, and industrialization reform.
In 1977, Congress passed the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA), which makes it unlawful for U.S. businesspersons or companies to pay, with money or anything else of value, to foreign officials to secure beneficial contracts. The anti-bribery requirements of the FCPA have applied to all U.S. persons since 1977. In 1998, certain amendments were revised and the anti-bribery requirements now apply to foreign firms and persons who cause an act in continuance of bribery within the United States. The government was attempting to restricted illegal behavior, which is why they implemented the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act after the SEC discovered that over 400 companies were sending corrupt payments to foreign government officials and
In The Crucible, by Arthur Miller, the Salem court gradually transformed from its original judicial goals to corruption, which strengthened Miller’s argument of the susceptibility of legal systems to ungodliness. Since Miller was suddenly listed as a sinner due to an accusation, he wrote this play as a commentary to the Puritan society and the corruption of officials. Situational irony was heavily utilized to contrast the original goals of a just theocracy to the resulting court corruption. In the beginning, the court strived to achieve equity and fairly punish sinners. However, the court then used the concept of “devil” to manipulate anyone
In the American version of a democratic system, a handful of extremely wealthy individuals and large corporations control the political system. By "funding" or bribing the candidates, they directly influence the election and nominations of presidents, governors, senators and congress members. The money is used for campaign staff, door to door voting operations, and television advertising. The continued influence of the wealthy violates the basic principle of democratic political equality.This cynical political campaign has become part of the democratic system that the politicians are not even required to justify their action. Even though a truly democratic system is too perfect to exist, a corrupted political system destroys the hope for a system that has the public's interest in mind.
There are many corporate organizations that have expanded their business opportunities outside of the U.S. Consequently, these global organizations are required to conform to The Foreign Corrupt Practices Act of 1977 (FCPA). Under the FCPA, anti-bribery and accounting provisions exist for companies to identify unlawful acts and comply with requirements by maintaining accurate records of transactions and implementing internal controls. (DoJ, 2015a, FCPA: An Overview section, para. 2-3).
The foreign Corrupt Practices Act prohibits paying or offering anything of value to foreign officials for the purpose of obtaining or keeping a business. The FCPA was enacted by congress in 1977 due to various reports that were made by the Security and Exchange Commission (SEC). The Security and Exchange Commission (SEC) reported different issues concerning bribery and illegal payments by United Sates companies. The FCPA states that it’s unlawful to make payments to foreign officials; having a corrupt intend that will make a foreign official to misuse his or her position in directing a business. The FCPA intends to reinstitute public confidence in the integrity of the American business system.
The FCPA (Foreign Corrupt Practices Act of 1977 was passed to ensure that U.S. firms do not engage in illegal bribing of foreign government officials to assist in obtaining or retaining business. Specifically, this act prohibits any offer, promise to pay, payment or even authorization of payment to a foreign official to influence it, secure any advantage or to assist in obtaining or retaining business.
Moreover, the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act makes it unlawful for certain classes of people and entities to make payments to foreign government officials to assist in obtaining or retaining business. Specifically, the anti-bribery provision of the FCPA prohibits the willful use of the mails or any means of instrumentality of interstate commerce to be corruptly in furtherance of any offer, payment, promise to pay, or authorization of the payment of money on anything of value to any person. While knowing that all or a portion of such money or thing of value will be offered, given or promised, directly or indirectly, to a foreign official to influence the foreign official. Through his or her official capacity inducing the foreign official to do or omit to do an act in violation of he is or her lawful duties, or to secure any improper advantage in order to
The United States Department of Justice and the Securities and Exchange Commission rarely enforced the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, enacted in 1977, until 2010— over a decade since its modern reform in 1998. This surge in penalization of unethical acts such as bribery and other methods used to ensure foreign business ventures has been called a “new era of FCPA enforcement” by the DOJ, resulting in $1.8 billion in payments accrued from domestic firms and their foreign partners, compared to $300,000 in 2000 (Kohler). Because of ambiguity within the legislation, especially the undefined terms “foreign official” and “obtain or retain business,” the U.S. government is able to manipulate the FCPA for monetary gain, as well as shape foreign economies based upon their own values.
As an American Businessman complained that in fact the opposite was created: U.S. business was placed at a competitive disadvantage as only U.S. companies were barred from paying bribes, whereas no such restrictions were in place for companies from other countries. For the results, these critics being charged is a major contracts that went to foreign companies willing to engage in graft. Many companies in the US have implemented all-inclusive of FCPA compliance programs in order to feel educated, prevented, and detected the improper payments by the agencies.
Congress enacted the FCPA to bring a halt to the bribery of foreign officials and to restore public confidence in the integrity of the American business system. The FCPA was intended to have (and has had) an enormous impact on the way American firms do business. Several firms that paid bribes to foreign officials have been the subject of criminal and civil enforcement actions, resulting in large fines and suspension and debarment from federal procurement contracting, and their employees and officers have gone to jail. To avoid such consequences, many firms have implemented detailed compliance programs intended to prevent and to detect any improper payments by employees and agents. The FCPA prohibits any American citizen to be involved in committing any bribery for business issues. Paying or receiving money or anything of value makes it against the law and punishment should be enforced by the government in order for justice to take place. As mentioned in the Lay-Parson’s Guide to FCPA, “The anti-bribery provisions of the FCPA make it unlawful for a U.S. person, and certain foreign issuers of securities, to make a corrupt payment to a foreign official for the purpose of obtaining or retaining business for or with, or directing business to, any person. Since 1998, they also apply to foreign firms and persons who take any act in furtherance of such a corrupt payment while in the United States.”
The US was the first country to actively regulate such legislation on foreign trade, international law, and code of ethics. The idea of the FPCA was to eliminate these acts of corporate corruption. Corruption is caused by the act of abusing either a public or private office for personal gain (CleanGovBiz). Furthermore, the effects of corruption in which is imposed on the economic, political and social development of society has facilitated to the evolution of this Act. All around, it can be argued that corruption inflicts a threat on the sustainable development as well as economies alike (CleanGovBiz). Essentially, this Act is an anti-bribery act which makes it unlawful and prohibits all U.S. personal and certain foreign issuers of securities, foreign firms, and persons from making these corrupt payments within the U.S. or within its territories. The Foreign Corrupt Practices Act highlights the national need for effective and adequate internal control systems to
The Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) of 1977 and the corresponding amendments set forth by the Omnibus Trade and Competitiveness Act of 1988 and Amendments of 1998 have tremendous ramifications for U.S. multinational companies at large, their subsidiaries, and foreign partners. While the main purpose of the original policy was to make it “unlawful to bribe foreign government officials to obtain or retain business”, the many statutes, their exceptions, and enforcement have gone through several iterations and most recently expanded jurisdiction of the law to non-U.S. territories. In bribery cases, several conditions involving the perpetrator, intent of the act, and the recipient of the bribe,
The legal aspect of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) of 1977 is very critical, which is a U.S. Federal Law that prohibits any U.S. citizen from bribing a foreign official for the purpose of obtaining improper advantages to secure or retain a business. (Legal, I. U. (n.d.). The Foreign Corrupt Practice Act (FCPA) applies to all organizations that are recorded on any stock trade or operating a business in the United States. Cultural differences of business practices are a major
The Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) was enacted in 1977 to control widespread bribery of foreign officials. Foreign officials are being bribed by United States companies to win business with them.