Corruption: The mistake you make…

By Tymofiy Mylovanov, University of Pittsburgh and VoxUkraine

The mistake you make, don’t you see, is in thinking one can live in a corrupt society without being corrupt oneself. After all, what do you achieve by refusing to make money? You’re trying to behave as though one could stand right outside our economic system. But one can’t.
― George Orwell, Keep the Aspidistra Flying

Many people will agree that the following three hypothetical examples constitute corruption.

1. A director of a volunteer network involved in relocating refugees receives a 13% kickback per refugee from the funds paid by the Ukrainian government to an organization providing shelter to the refugees.

2. The school administration collects 50,000 USD in cash each semester, fall and spring, from the parents of the students. There are no receipts and no accountability.

3. A university professor sells passing grades in his/her course for 500 UAH.

Here’s the problem: these examples are not hypothetical; these are true stories.


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