A Small Tip to the Egyptian Government
What happens when you combine oriental shrewdness with modern business practices? I can not help but think about it when I read the post EGYPT: What’s beyond traffic?! at Babylon & Beyond in Los Angeles Times. This is the paragraph to blame:
The new law has been met with several suspicions: First, many people allege the heavy fines aim at extracting more resources for the indebted treasury while others believe that the imposition of new safety measures aim at benefiting government-supported businessmen who would allegedly be involved in the importation of anti-reflection stop triangles, first-aid kits and fire extinguishers, which are now required in all cars. Prime Minister Ahmed Nazif had reportedly denied such accusations saying that the government just sought to tighten safety measures and eliminate traffic jams.
Ignoring Prime Minister Nazif’s comment, I have nothing to say about government-supported businesses will benefit most, because it is a certainty. I have doubts, though, if they will succeed pulling up the sorely needed resources to beef up the treasury. As the writer has pointed out:
On the contrary, the new law is believed to have opened a new door for more corruption as it gives cops a better chance to ask for higher bribes and turn a blind eye to violations in return.
If they are not careful, the new law is indeed likely to increase bribes while not being registered in inflation statistics for they are completely off the record, and leave the treasury empty like it usually has been before. Fortunately, there is an easy solution to every difficult problem as Occam had proved with its razor long time ago. Our elders have said: “There is no need to rediscover America, it has already been discovered.” For the Egyptian officials, this typically translates to: Follow our beautiful government (you, dear readers, follow me).
The trick, or tip, whichever you prefer, is the concept of open government. Be open about it. There is no need to hide that the treasury needs money and what is more convenient than the traffic offenders contribute more to this end:
Budget for traffic fines!
That is correct. It is probably too late for 2008, but 2009 budget should be around the corner within a few months. Prepare a budget item and name it “other revenue” (well, there is a limit for openness; just like everything in life, avoid the extremes and be discrete). Now place your desired estimate of revenue to be looted, correction, to be collected, in this column.
Here comes the best practices for management part. Split this amount to cities based on the number of vehicles in each city and assign them as targets to be achieved for the fiscal year 2009 and roll them out to the traffic divisions of the police department. Make sure that everybody involved understands that a- their promotions and raises depend on their reaching the said amounts; b- failure, that is falling short of targets will result in being appointed to weird and wonderful places (Sahara comes to mind) where no vehicles exist, at all (i.e. nobody to bribe).
This technique has been used by the Turkish government for more than 5 years with great success and to my slight amusement. It is great fun to visit the police station around 28th, 29th of each month. I always watch the “person in charge” asking the current figure to the semi computer illiterate officer who can only use one and only one finger. And it is a treat to watch him, upon hearing the number, which is almost always below their quota, pick his radio and yell “I need more tickets, do not come back to the station without them; don’t even think about it.”
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