With the endless rants about corruption being rampant in the country and efforts to eradicate it being futile one begs to probe deeper into the heart of the matter. It didn’t take long to discover not only is corruption now an inborn thing in the country, it is also become a learned art. As showcased in one junior level academic book, children are now exposed to the art of corruption from as early as 7 years old.
When the famous writer Oscar Wilde once said ‘Life imitates art far more than art imitates Life.” he was not far of the mark, in fact he was eerily accurate. The rest of us are slowly catching up to that fact.
In one particular Shona reader, the writer sets up a fictitious scenario in which a bus is stopped by the traffic police. It’s quite astounding how the writer goes on to break down the dynamics between the police and the bus driver.
He got the confrontation down to a T, from the driver operating without a driver’s license and how they finally reach a compromise when the driver pays a bribe to the police officer so he won’t be penalized by the law.
While it’s just a fictitious story, one can’t help but notice how it mimics real life situations. You are what you read and the message being sent is that while corruption is abominable it’s necessary sometimes when you’re backed in a corner. Pupils are getting the subliminal message that cutting corners is acceptable.
In this day and age children need heroes and icons who stand for doing the right thing in the face of adversity however children are learning that there are necessary evils which in turn chips a thread of innocence from their psyches.
