| Chapter 1: | Introduction |
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In the present work, however, we take a departure from the study conducted by Transparency International-Zambia to focus instead, and more particularly, on the legal and institutional framework under the Anti-Corruption Commission Act 1996.
1.1 Underlying Thesis
Underscoring the legal and policy arguments in this book is the view that if political will to fight corruption is not present amongst the political class and institutions at the top levels of society it can be difficult to bring about reform.7 According to a recent report on anti-corruption, state capture is often the biggest problem facing anti-corruption reformers and can be the reason for an absence of political will to tackle corruption.8 Often, political elites tend to abuse their power to fight corruption by targeting only their political opponents.9 As a result, the political will to fight corruption can rise and fall, making a good case for other actors to join the fight to maintain the necessary political will.10
Although opposition political parties, where they exist and operate freely, can help put corruption at the top of the agenda,11 they also tend to be quite disruptive where they are seen to be pursuing a political agenda of de-campaigning the government of the day out of power. In Zambia, for example, while the 2006 presidential and general elections were declared free and fair by many international and local observers,12 some losing presidential candidates have since losing the elections embarked on a loathsome and bitter campaign, accusing the government of the day of being riddled with corrupt practices.13 Yet these same individuals from the opposition were just the other day part of the ruling party until they were either fired by the Republican President or they got frustrated because they could not get to the helm of government. While in power, these politicians never spoke out against corruption. But today, out of frustration, and fuelled by an insatiable appetite for political power, they are agitating ferociously that the government of the day is corrupt.14