Perception of corruption by traffic police and taxi drivers in Bukavu DR Congo: the limits of moral analysis

ABSTRACT

This study explores how traffic police, taxi drivers and anticorruption agencies each perceive corruption in Bukavu in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Thirteen traffic police officers were interviewed, three focus groups of four to five taxi drivers were conducted, and two members of anti-corruption agencies were interviewed. Findings suggest that while western NGOs and anti-corruption agencies consider corruption immoral and a major barrier to development, both the traffic police and taxi drivers perceive it as a normal expression of solidarity and a sine qua non condition for survival. For them, corruption is a system that provides job security, greater access to food, accommodation, healthcare and education in the dysfunctional and failed Congolese State. This suggests that framing corruption in the transport sector of Bukavu solely as a moral issue and seeking to eliminate it without establishing a new system that effectively meets the needs of the population may result in more serious social problems than the corruption itself.

KEYWORDS:

• Failed state
• corruption
• survival
• corruption tackling
• traffic police and taxi drivers

Acknowledgments

My deepest thanks go to my interviewees, to all the people who facilitated my fieldwork. Research for this project was was logistically supported by Université Evangélique en Afrique. Lynn Nygaard from Peace Research Institute, Oslo and Caroline Gracia from The University of Michigan provided excellent editing assistance. The views I expressed do not necessarily reflect the views of my donor or colleagues, and any errors in the text are mine alone.

Disclosure Statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.

Notes on contributor

Mr. Ali Bitenga Alexandre is interested in ethics and governance, social change, gender, peace and conflict.