In the economic sector, corruption is fought against through compliance regulations. In my article on compliance, I regretted that there are no compliance rules between politicians and their voters.
What the lobbyists do, however, is way over the top.
The only and exclusive purpose of lobbyists is to influence decisions, and to influence them in such a way as to be definitely beneficial to only one interest group, institution, sector or enterprise.
Lobbyists do not only work with favours granted (corruption). Their business is also defined by fear, cheating and forgery. They are experts in creating false threat scenarios using so-called facts. Allegedly scientific results and manipulated statistics are just some of the means that lobbyists do not hesitate to use.
Democracy can only be universally beneficial if difficult decisions remain free from personal influence on those who make them. The very existence of lobbyism and lobbyists means the exact opposite
Corruption is the attempt to “buy what is unsalable” in individual cases.
Corruption is socially unacceptable. Compliance is supposed to prevent corruption. Every employee of an enterprise or a civic agency has to swear allegiance to compliance regulations, even if there is only the slightest possibility of corruption. Every violation has the most serious consequences.
Lobbyism is professional corruption at an extremely high level!
As I said, lobbyism is defined by the desire to “buy what is unsalable”. Whenever highly important decisions with immense consequences for the common good are to be made, lobbyism is involved. Lobbyists are socially accepted and in the focus of public interest.
Unfortunately, it is again the same procedure as all the time: what is forbidden on a small scale is legally practiced on a huge scale. The small sinners are punished; the big ones prosper and become socially accepted.
Corruption is prosecuted, lobbyism flourishes. The only possible solution is to demand:
Lobbyism must be ostracized just like corruption and suitable ways and laws must be found to fight it!
Because a one-sided prosecution of corruption on a small scale combined with tolerating lobbyism on a huge scale continues to be detrimental for our democracy.
And that is not what we want!
RMD
P.S.
It seems that the lobbyist is already a commonly accepted profession. Statistically spoken, every representative of the people in Berlin has 2.9 lobbyists (Quelle HR).
(translated by EG)
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