We have already analyzed the most relevant points about the concept of corruption, as well as how we could fight it and put an end to it. We have even mentioned situations of corruption that caused a great impact in the history of our country several years ago. Nevertheless, it is not enough just to mention them and take them as an example, because as it is well known, until today we are still under a corrupt regime. On this occasion, we decided to publish the most recent cases of corruption that have occurred in our country, with the intention of leaving our public so impressed by the shamelessness of those responsible that they feel motivated to create a change that will allow us to progress as a society and enforce the laws which aim is to seek the general interest.
The judiciary in Peru has been affected historically and drastically, either by the corrupt figures of power and the controversies generated, in addition to their abdication of the functions and the formation of illicit networks in the Judiciary and the Public Ministry. We can develop one of the most recent cases, The White Collars of the Port, in which corrupt judges and prosecutors took over the Peruvian justice system and it was discovered that a criminal organization was dedicated to influence peddling and corruption of officials. Indeed, the latest study called "Corruption in the justice system: Caso Los Cuellos Blancos del Puerto" points out that is a total of 334 magistrates (151 judges and 183 prosecutors) are involved or sentenced for alleged acts of corruption throughout the country. This type of cases observed in entities of the states show the lack of ethics and morals of judges and prosecutors. A possible solution could be a restructuration in the institutions make those who committed these acts of corruption pay for the damages caused to the nation. This also raises an institutional problem, because currently Peruvians do not trust the institutions of the state because there are only a few that are presumed to be free of links to corruption or other crimes. It shows that in Peru there is no real justice since our main justice system is run by criminals. How can justice fulfill its role under these conditions?
About the political sector, we can concretely point out that these reprehensible acts continue to produce distrust in the different political parties, within the political leaders and in most of the public establishments. It leads many people to adopt less cooperative strategies and encourages desertion in order not to be exploited by people belonging to corrupt networks. Thus, the decisions taken by the current President of the Republic, Pedro Castillo, are not the most favorable for the country and, therefore, worsening the political crisis that has already existed for some years.
However, it is important to point out that not everything is necessarily the fault of the Executive branch, but also of the other branches of government, mainly the legislative branch. A specific example is that proposal made by the opposition bench, which relates the change of more than 50 articles of the current Constitution in order to return to bicameralism and be able to be reelected, ignoring the fact that a referendum was carried out in 2018 in which it was explicitly stated that the citizens did not agree with this proposal. As a result, it seems that these politicians of the Legislative, Executive and Judicial powers continue to look after their own interests, but not those of the Peruvian people.
Regarding economic corruption, the case of Juan Silva, former Minister of Transportation and Communications, who ran away a couple of weeks ago and his localisation remains unknown, has recently come to light. Juan Silva is the third person from Pedro Castillo's entourage with an arrest warrant for alleged acts of corruption in the MTC. His collaborator Zamir Villanueva was arrested after he presented an audio to the prosecutor, in which he mentioned the delivery to Juan Silva of USD$100,000 as an advance for directing public works contracts in favor of Chinese companies.
On the other hand, the social sector has been massively affected during the last few years, and the development of COVID-19 has been a determining factor. Orlando Vignolo Cueva, a specialist in regulatory, administrative and public works law, says that the corrupt history of social and public works in the country was an important factor when talking about boosting the sector in the midst of the health crisis. "An enormous opportunity has been lost: public works should have been directed to the construction of hospitals and buildings to make the crisis bearable," said Vignolo Cueva, emphasizing that the country has been hit hard by the activity of lousy construction operators and corruption scandals during the pandemic.
Bibliography
- BBC News Mundo. (2018, 11 diciembre). Referéndum Perú: aprobadas 3 de las 4 reformas constitucionales que pretenden acabar con la corrupción en el paÃs. https://www.bbc.com/mundo/noticias-america-latina-46498040
- Comisión de Constitución aprueba dictamen que establece el retorno a la bicameralidad. (2022, 7 junio). Comunicaciones. https://comunicaciones.congreso.gob.pe/noticias/comision-de-constitucion-aprueba-dictamen-que-establece-el-retorno-a-la-bicameralidad/
- Fowks, J. (2022, 17 junio). Pedro Castillo afronta una investigacion por corrupcion antes de culminar su primer año de Gobierno. El Pais. https://elpais.com/internacional/2022-06-16/pedro-castillo-afronta-una-investigacion-por-corrupcion-antes-de-culminar-su-primer-ano-de-gobierno.html
- Ojo publico (2022. 6 de mayo). Enemigo en casa: los jueces y fiscales corruptos que coparon el sistema de justicia en Perú
https://ojo-publico.com/1809/el-enemigo-en-casa-magistrados-corruptos-en-el-sistema-de-justicia
- Idehpucp (2020,21 de junio) Cuellos Blancos https://idehpucp.pucp.edu.pe/observatorio-de-casos-anticorrupcion-y-lavado-de-activos/casos-materia-corrupcion/cuellos-blancos/
- César, R. (2022). Juan Silva pasó a la clandestinidad por orden de detención. La República Perú. https://larepublica.pe/politica/2022/06/08/juan-silva-paso-a-la-clandestinidad-por-orden-de-detencion-ministerio-publico-pedro-castillo-mtc/
- Ana Karen de la Torre (2021, 07 de abril) La reactivación de la construcción en Perú, marcada por los casos de corrupción
