Finland's corruption woes

[Tiriol]

Meanwhile, in Finland, public officials let corruption slide. Report by YLE News.

Prosecutor: Corruption Offences Slide by Officials

Authorities are often oblivious of graft and corruption in the business world, reports the regional daily Turun Sanomat.

“We only see a small number of bribery cases each year. This is because most corruption crimes are linked to broader criminal cases,” said state prosecutor Jukka Rappe in an interview with the paper.

White-collar crime offences are attracting more attention following probes this summer into improprieties linked to political parties’ campaign financing. Today non-monetary benefits and “good old boy” networks are increasingly attracting suspicion.

The campaign finance controversy has cost Finland its number one ranking as the least corrupt state on the planet.

Finland now ranks fifth in anti-corruption organisation Transparency International’s global corruption perception index.

YLE

Quite frankly, I wouldn't shed tears for any of the major political parties (Social Democrat party, Centre party and National Coalition party) should they come under police investigation. The Centre party and its party leader and party secretary - Prime Minister Matti Vanhanen being the leader and Jarmo Korhonen the secretary - have been especially obnoxious, but all three parties have dirt on them. I don't want to even think about how much the good old boys' networks have influenced local politics and bureaucracy.