*WASHINGTON – The United States last year slid down the rankings of aglobal corruption index as America´s system of checks and balances facedgrowing threats on Donald Trump´s watch, Transparency International saidTuesday.*
The US lost four points to score 71 out of 100 on the watchdog´s 2018Corruption Perceptions Index, sending the country tumbling out of the top20 for the first time since 2011.
“The low score comes at a time when the US is experiencing threats to itssystem of checks and balances as well as an erosion of ethical norms at thehighest levels of power,” TI said in its annual report.
The second year of Trump´s presidency was a turbulent one, ranging fromdamaging revelations in an investigation probing links between Trump´s 2016campaign team and Russia, to his controversial backing for a Supreme Courtnominee accused of sexual assault.
The US leader, who frequently rails against the media for writing “fakenews”, was also dogged by accusations of nepotism and conflicts of interest.
Last month, Trump agreed to close his personal charity after the New Yorkattorney general said it had acted “as little more than a checkbook toserve Mr. Trump´s business and political interests”.
Transparency International´s closely-watched index ranks 180 nationsaccording to their perceived level of public sector corruption, where ascore of zero means very corrupt and 100 signifies very clean.
“The Trump presidency has illuminated the cracks in the US system forensuring a government that is accountable to the public interest,” TI´s ZoeReiter, acting representative to the US, told AFP.
“But President Trump is a symptom rather than a cause; the issues werethere before he took office. For example, the Office of Government Ethicssimply doesn´t have the teeth to control for conflicts of interest at thehighest levels,” she said.Rise of autocrats
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As in previous years, New Zealand and Nordic countries were among the bestin class with Denmark narrowly beating New Zealand to the top spot at 88and 87 points respectively.
Strife-torn Somalia was once again the worst performer, below Yemen, SouthSudan and Syria which all scored in the low teens.
The Berlin-based watchdog also singled out Turkey and Hungary for fallingdown the rankings, blaming “the deterioration of rule of law and democraticinstitutions, as well as a rapidly shrinking space for civil society andindependent media”.
“With many democratic institutions under threat across the globe — often byleaders with authoritarian or populist tendencies — we need to do more tostrengthen checks and balances and protect citizens´ rights,” TI´s managingdirector Patricia Moreira said.
As part of its recommendations, the group urged governments to stand up fora free press and support civil society organisations that encourage publicoversight over government spending.
The index is compiled based on data from 12 international organisationsincluding the World Bank, African Development Bank and the World EconomicForum. – APP/AFP
