He noted that the issue of corruption is so endemic in society that the President of the World Bank at its 1996 Annual General Meeting referred to it as the "cancer of society".

According to Balram, corruption diverts resources from the poor to the rich, increases the cost of running businesses, distorts public expenditure and deters foreign investors. He also said it erodes constituency for aid programmes and humanitarian relief and is a major barrier to sound and equitable development.

The Auditor General (ag.) made these disclosures yesterday during a joint seminar hosted by the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) and the Office of the Auditor General. The seminar on corruption prevention in the public sector and the priorities of financial audit or performance audit, was held at Cara Inn, Pere Street, Kitty, Georgetown.

"I believe that it is fair to say that in no country, be it developed, developing or under-developed, no institution is immune from the tentacles of corruption," Balram asserted.
"Where corruption exists, there is no doubt that goods and services become more costly, sub-standard work is performed and corrupt people, including corrupt public officers gain at the expense of the State," he said.

"Indeed, the very fabric of society is being destroyed by this immoral and illegal act (and) it is therefore in the interest of all citizens, not only Government, that an all-out war is waged against corruption," Balram posited.

He said unless this is done, society may undergo irreparable damage.

In this regard, he told participants at the seminar, all of whom are either auditors or accountants, that this is a good opportunity for them to learn some of the tools of their trade to combat corruption.

"While it is acknowledged that it is not the primary duty of the auditor to fight corruption in Government, the auditor can and do assist not only in the detection of corruption, but also its prevention," Balram stated.

He noted that for instance, during the course of their evaluation of the various Government Programmes, they may be able to detect corrupt practices. When this happens, Balram said they have a duty to "probe the matter to the bottom" and to report their findings to the appropriate authorities.

In addition, auditors do identify deficiencies in systems and procedures, laws and regulations, which deficiencies if corrected may go a long way towards minimizing the extent to which corrupt practices can prevail, he told the gathering. In this way, Balram said, auditors can contribute significantly in the fight against corruption.

"We, as auditors and particularly those of us who audit Public Sector Accounts make a significant and important contribution to the management of our country's affairs," he said.

He said, too, that while working in Government may not be the most financially rewarding, it can be a challenging and learning experience.

Said Balram: "I am also bold enough to say that on the day of reckoning, we shall be included in those few and far between souls as identified by Andrew Carnegie who said: "The average person puts only 25% of his energy and ability into his work. The world takes off its hat to those who put more than 50% of their capacity and stand on its head for those few who devote 100 per cent."

Head of the ACCA, Public Sector Technical Issues, Mr. Andy Wynne, who gave two well-researched and analytical presentations at the seminar on the issues of 'Corporate Governance and Internal Control in the Public Sector' and 'Financial Performance Audit - what are the priorities?' said corruption is one method the rich and powerful use to gain and retain more wealth and control.

He quoted Mr. James Wolfensohn, President of the World Bank who said: "Corruption is a problem that all countries have to confront. Solutions, however, can only be home-grown."

He also quoted an Indian author, Kautilya, who wrote nearly 2,500 years ago, that "just as it is impossible not to taste the honey or poison on the tip of your tongue, so it is impossible for someone dealing with government funds not to taste at least a little bit of the king's wealth".

Wynne further indicated that corruption has increased in recent years with privatization and liberalization.

He quoted Mr. Joseph Stiglitz, ex-Chief Economist at the World Bank who said: "Privatisation has made matters so much worse that in many countries...privatization is jokingly referred to as 'briberization'."

"Ethiopia needs over $365 million worth of food aid, which is a lot of money for you or I, but the United States spent $365 billion on arms last year and the advanced countries spend $365 billion a year on supporting their agriculture," he pointed out.