Political Freedom: Government Corruption

Introduction Political freedom is a benefit that is often overlooked and undervalued in most western democracies. Many other countries do not have the same benefit. Some suffer from political repression as a means of governmental control. In some cases the political repression is because of government corruption. The literature shows that countries with a pointy resource have high levels of corruption. A pointy resource is the primary resource that brings in the vast majority of a countries income. To maintain control in countries that have pointy resources corrupt government officials repress the political freedom of citizens. This is perpetrated so that government officials can maintain power and continue to siphon off resources. These …show more content…
The negative impacts on the state vastly outlive the short-term economic benefit. This is primarily because the wealth that comes from the pointy resource not used to create infrastructure or public goods. The focus is on the short-term increase in gross domestic product (GDP) rather than creating sustainable economies. The betterment of the average person is not viewed as a priority in these states. The literature asserts that the governments of these states become corrupt because elites become self-serving. The interests of individuals replace those of the state. The quality of leaders that come to power in these states is greatly reduced. Those who attempt to gain power in these states are more self-serving and less altruistic. Also the rise to power in these environments is cutthroat, thus ensuring that only the most viscous and ambitious rise to …show more content…
The first section of civil liberties is freedom of expression. The Nigerian people have laws protecting freedom of speech and press. Although in reality the government tends to squash dissention and arrest people who vocally oppose the government. The government is particularly vindictive when journalists attempt to cover the government corruption. The government does not infringe upon religious practices; they allow citizens freedom to practice the religion of their choice for the most part. The state does typically allow peaceful assembly but they are decidedly against any gathering that could possibly incite political, ethnic or religious strife. They have a ban on gatherings that could cause strife in the above three areas. Overall the laws of the state appear to allow freedom of expression but in reality the government quashes opposition. Saudi Arabia the government has control of the media with members of the royal family owning much of the media in the country. It is criminal in the government to criticize the government. They have arrested many writers who have protested against the government including those who have used the Internet as their writing medium. The law in Saudi Arabia requires all citizens to be Muslim. The Saudi Arabian government also restricts what is allowed to be taught in schools and universities. Citizens are not allowed to gather or protest with the government tending to arrest