2021 Activity

Public Opinion Poll On: The State of corruption and Anti-Corruption in Palestine in 2021 Executive summary

Public Opinion Poll On:  The State of corruption and Anti-Corruption in Palestine in 2021  Executive summary

Public Opinion Poll On:

The State of corruption and Anti-Corruption in Palestine in 2021

Executive summary

 

The Coalition for Integrity and Accountability- AMAN conducted a public opinion poll in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem and the Gaza Strip. The poll was carried out during the period between the 6th -13th of October 2021[1] by the Qiyas Center for Surveys and Measuring Opinion Polls (Qiyas Center). The purpose of this poll is to monitor the change in citizens' perceptions and level of awareness of the reality of corruption.

Results of the poll revealed four main issues that citizens believe must be given priority to be solved, these are: the prevalence of corruption, ending the Israeli occupation, the economic issues and the internal political division with 28%, 23%, 23% and 13% respectively.

28% of respondents indicated that the increase in the widespread of corruption poses the most important challenge to be solved. This percentage was higher among residents of villages, small towns and refugee camps. Similarly, the percentage was higher among government and private sector employees.

The abovementioned is accompanied by poor transparency in the management of many public issues arising from the CORONA pandemic and the declaration of a state of emergency by the Palestinian Authority (PA). This is exemplified by the distribution of the CORONA vaccine at some stages, as well as through the mechanisms by which the financial assistance was distributed to those affected. Other examples include measures taken in addressing the killing of the activist Nizar Banat where public freedoms, including freedom of expression and the right to assembly were violated. All of which led to weaken citizens’ confidence in the system.

Clear discrepancies arose in the positions, opinions and perceptions of citizens in both the West Bank and Gaza Strip (WB&GS) on some issues. According to the results of the poll, a stereotypical critical attitude towards the PA was evident by Hamas affiliates in, both, the WB&GS with more severity expressed by the Hamas WB group. However, their positions on the authority in the GS (the Hamas authority) were less severe. This was reflected clearly in the results of various areas such as: promotions, appointments, consternation of corruption and on groups that are most corrupt.  This reflected the impact of factional intolerance in the assessment of issues. On the other hand, these views appear to be less acute among those supporting the faction in power in WB, where 36% of respondents pointed to the problem of the widespread corruption as a challenge which must be given priority to be solved, compared to 15% in the GS. However, concerning the consequences and effects of the internal division, the results showed a higher degree of sensitivity among citizens in the GS.

 

Two thirds of citizens in the WB are not convinced of the effectiveness and adequacy of the agencies in charge of anti-corruption in the WB. In addition, citizens question the independence of these institutions and believe that influential political parties interfere in their affairs. According to respondents of this poll, the most intrusive parties in this regard were as follows: 1. the Council of Ministers and minsters; 2. the office of the President; 3. the security agencies; 4. Governors; 5. Political leaders.

Similarly, citizens of the GS are also not satisfied of the anti-corruption efforts and adequacies of the agencies designated for the purpose. They too hold doubts of the independence of these institutions and believe that they are affected by parties of the ruling authority there mostly: the security forces, factions’ leaders, the public prosecutor and members of parliament.

The results reveal that there is consensus on the low level of independence and effectiveness of parties in charge of follow-up of corruption cases, namely: the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) and the State Audit and Administrative Control Bureau (SAACB), in the WB; the Anti-Corruption Prosecution and Money Crimes and the SAACB in the GS. And, it is also agreed that these bodies are subject to interference and meddling in their work by various influential parties such as: the office of the President, the security institution and political parties’ leaders, in the WB, and Hamas in particular in the GS, all of which may lead to weakening the citizens' confidence of those responsible for pursuing corruption cases, both, in the WB&GS.

 

The majority of citizens (63%) still believe that the level of corruption in the PA institutions not only it continues to be high but has increased in 2021.

Pessimism over shadows expectations of citizens concerning the reality and anti-corruption efforts for next year, especially in the WB. In that regard, 59% of respondents of this poll believe that corruption will increase from the 55% revealed in last year’s results. The percentage of this view is increased to 78% in the WB compared to 31% in the GS.

The majority of respondents in the WB believe that corruption is concentrated within the highest level of public sector employees, and in particular, those holding positions in institutions of the executive authority (ministries, the president office and the security agencies). In the meantime, citizens in the GS see that opportunities for corruption are mostly concentrated in NGOs and the private sector where aid is distributed. The percentage of citizens who believe that corruption is more prevalent in government institutions is higher among residents of villages and towns, followed by those living in refugee camps and then cities. The percentage is also higher among people above the age of 40. Similarly, employees in the private sector show a higher percentage compared to government and civil sector employees. Also a higher percentage is noted among those with higher incomes compared to those with a lower incomes.

Service provision ministries such as:  Ministry of Finance (MoF), Ministry of Health (MoH), Ministry of Social Affairs (MoSA), Ministry of Interior (MoI) and Ministry of Education (MoE) in addition to the Crossings and Borders Authority are considered the most vulnerable institutions to the spread of corruption.

Corruption crimes: wasta, nepotism, misappropriation of public funds, abuse of power, bribery, money-laundering and abuse of influence continue to be the most prevalent forms of corruption. That said, 25% of respondents find wasta and nepotism is the most widely spread crime, followed by misappropriation of public funds with 23%. In third place with 15% came abuse of power, and abuse of trust 11%, followed by bribery offences in exchange for public service, and money laundering 10% each.

A rise was noted in citizens believing that food and medicine corruption crimes increased in 2021, as 70% of respondents attested to that (80% in the WB VS. 57% in the GS),  marking a significant increase in 2021  when compared to the 59% result in 2020. Reasons for the rise include:

  • Failure to hold perpetrators of these crimes accountable.
  • Using wasta nepotism and favoritism as means to cover up for other corruption crimes.
  • The Penal Law does not provide deterrent penalties.
  • Lack of citizens’ awareness of these crimes.

Citizens continue to believe that the weak commitment to the rule of law, lack of seriousness in holding senior corrupt officials accountable, and some of them enjoying immunity, weakness of civil society organizations (CSO) and the Israeli occupation… all contributed to the spread of corruption in Palestine. Citizens also believe that some services do not operate with high integrity, especially in the areas of appointments to senior positions, distribution of humanitarian assistance and health services.

Moreover, wasta remains to be seen by citizens as means to access public services, especially in the GS. Respondents who actually practiced wasta attributed their behavior to the following causes:

  • Fear of being unable to receive the service.
  • Bypass bureaucracy (shortcutting procedures).
  • Fear of granting their share to others who are undeserving of it, due to corruption.
  • Lack of confidence in the integrity of officials.

Reasons for resorting to wasta varied and were numerous as seen by the citizen. When justifying as to what is the most important reason for resorting to it. The results showed that 25% (30% WB, 18% GS) of respondents said it was to cut time it takes for bureaucratic procedures. While 20% (22% WB, 18%GS) of them said it was due to “fear of granting it to an underserving person due to corruption”; 17% (18% WB, 16% GS) said that the most important reason was the lack of confidence in the integrity of service providers.

 

Bribery marks a rise in 2021

On the one hand, the results showed a decrease in the percentage of respondents who pointed out that bribery was the most widespread form of corruption when compared to the results of 2018 and 2017 (24%, 26% consecutively) by approximately 8 points and 10 points respectively, where 16% of citizens pointed out that it is the most widespread form of corruption. On the other hand, it increased slightly in 2021 compared to the previous two years (13% for 2020, 14% for 2019).

 

Download the Poll in English

 


[1] The Coalition for Integrity and Accountability- AMAN signed a contract with Qiyas Center for Surveys and Measuring Opinion Polls in its capacity as an expert institution specializing in survey research, to conduct this poll according to the statistical criteria adopted in public opinion polls.

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