Political corruption is a universal phenomenon which, even though the times, ideas, laws and cultures of different countries have evolved, has remained unchanged since ancient times. As long as we can remember, political corruption has accompanied the evolution of human kind through its different cultural stages or civilizations.

Early referrals to the concept date back to the Pharaonic Egypt period, with later evidence indicating that Roman politics hit the bottom due to its corruption in the Republic times of Roman civilization (70 and 50 BC), and as a result the legal code “Twelve Tables” being passed, which imposed the death penalty on judges who accepted bribes and politicians who attempted to influence election results through bribery or other forms of “soft power”.

This concept lies in the ability to shape others’ preferences based on culture and intangible assets, such as the credibility and trustworthy of individuals and institutions.
As the political corruption concept is susceptible to ambiguity, we must specify it.

Political corruption can be defined as any act or legal or illegal omission of someone who, based on a public office (elected or appointed) embracing political positions, but also on a position in a labor union or business association, favors a particular interest that causes public (not necessarily monetary) harm. Hence political corruption can be for private and group enrichment, and also for power preservation, purposes. According to, these two forms of political corruption are often connected.

The concept given for political corruption highlights two relevant points: first, that which motivates political corruption; that is, the search for self-enrichment, ego and power maintenance (as opposed to a non-corrupt political leader’s concern for citizenship’s well-being); second, the consequences of political corruption: national impoverishment, institutional decay, arbitrary power, authoritarian tendencies and less freedom and democracy.

Political corruption decelerates social growth and economic activity, diverts resources from basic services, reduces innovation and, consequently, also the introduction of new products and technologies because innovators and entrepreneurs usually lack political connection. In general, foreign direct investments decrease, and national firms’ value drops. Thus, industry must pay more to lenders given the perceived political instability impacting the credit market. At those countries where the state institutions are weaker, corruption is often linked to violence, whereas in the so called mature democracies, corruption means the increase of economic and social insecurity and also the opportunity for the privilege to get richer at the expense of everyone else.
Political corruption is a universal phenomenon which, even though the times, ideas, laws and cultures of different countries have evolved, has remained unchanged since ancient times. As long as we can remember, political corruption has accompanied the evolution of human kind through its different cultural stages or civilizations. Early referrals to the concept date back to the Pharaonic Egypt period, with later evidence indicating that Roman politics hit the bottom due to its corruption in the Republic times of Roman civilization (70 and 50 BC), and as a result the legal code “Twelve Tables” being passed, which imposed the death penalty on judges who accepted bribes and politicians who attempted to influence election results through bribery or other forms of “soft power”. This concept lies in the ability to shape others’ preferences based on culture and intangible assets, such as the credibility and trustworthy of individuals and institutions. As the political corruption concept is susceptible to ambiguity, we must specify it. Political corruption can be defined as any act or legal or illegal omission of someone who, based on a public office (elected or appointed) embracing political positions, but also on a position in a labor union or business association, favors a particular interest that causes public (not necessarily monetary) harm. Hence political corruption can be for private and group enrichment, and also for power preservation, purposes. According to, these two forms of political corruption are often connected. The concept given for political corruption highlights two relevant points: first, that which motivates political corruption; that is, the search for self-enrichment, ego and power maintenance (as opposed to a non-corrupt political leader’s concern for citizenship’s well-being); second, the consequences of political corruption: national impoverishment, institutional decay, arbitrary power, authoritarian tendencies and less freedom and democracy. Political corruption decelerates social growth and economic activity, diverts resources from basic services, reduces innovation and, consequently, also the introduction of new products and technologies because innovators and entrepreneurs usually lack political connection. In general, foreign direct investments decrease, and national firms’ value drops. Thus, industry must pay more to lenders given the perceived political instability impacting the credit market. At those countries where the state institutions are weaker, corruption is often linked to violence, whereas in the so called mature democracies, corruption means the increase of economic and social insecurity and also the opportunity for the privilege to get richer at the expense of everyone else.
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