What do politicians really have in mind when they decide to enter politics? While many undoubtedly enter politics with noble intentions, many more clearly seem to see public service as a means for private enrichment.
It seems the latter—at least in Latin America—are in the majority. But how much of the recent news and current perceptions reflect a more active, independent judiciary and growing citizen engagement? Certainly, recent news would seem to indicate that public service and corruption are—to quote Sly and the Family Stone—a “family affair.” There’s current President Morales of Guatemala and his brother and son; former President Lula in Brazil and his wife; former President Kirchner of Argentina and her son; President Peña Nieto of Mexico and his wife; and, in Chile, President Bachelet‘s son and daughter-in-law.
More than these individual/familial cases, the larger question is whether these countries—institutionally and in their public tolerance of corruption—are turning a corner. Because maybe—just maybe—with these scandals being placed in the cross hairs of prosectors and public headlines, public officials will begin to rethink the consequences of treating the state as a private piggy bank.
Cartoon credit: Arcadio Esquivel, Costa Rica, CagleCartoons.com
