Lobbying: Ethics, Morality and Legalities Essay

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What is the difference between lobbying and bribery?

Lobbying is the ability to entice intelligently or indirectly a group of people to fulfil personal interest. Usually in lobbying, a person relies on the officials to win a contract or pass a law; therefore, s/he indirectly campaigns for his/her favour using gifts or money (not common) (Merriam-Webster dictionary).

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On the other hand, bribery mainly involves use of money to access unlawful or illegal advantage over others. In bribery, the objective of the bribe (money) is clear while in lobbying, the person giving the gift may necessarily not state the reason why s/he is doing so but in mind, s/he is sure the officials will accept his/her proposal. Therefore, lobbying involves mainly giving gifts with a hidden aim while bribery involves money and the briber states a favour in return or as a form of repayment.

What argument could the SLOC members make that the payments made do not fit the definition of an illegal bribe (under the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act [FCPA])?

The SLOC members did not make any payment to the officials but rather showered them with expensive gifts, which disqualifies them from bribery (The big business of the Olympics and bribery, 2009). According to Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, a bribe is “an illegal payment that is meant to influence an official to award or maintain business activity (n.d). Thus, the FCPA definition of a bribe as an illegal payment does not incriminate the SLOC members, which will be their major source of defence or argument.

Furthermore, there is no record or evidence involving the transfer of cash between the two groups with a clear aim of receiving an award of hosting Olympic Games, which will also be the basis of defence. In addition, the gifts issued by the SLOC members did not carry a statement describing the reward in return thus locking them out of FCPA’s judgement.

What do you think is the appropriate punishment for the violation of ethical and legal principles?

Personally, I think if any person violates the ethical principles or breaks the law he/she should face a severe punishment. On top of facing imprisonment of about two years or according to the constitution, the perpetrator should pay a heavy fine that would discourage others from committing a similar offence. Besides expulsion from his office, the professional body within his mandate should relieve him off duties in any other office in the world even after serving his punishment to serve as a warning to others.

Should the remedies be limited to the expulsion of the members who violated those principles, or should the entire community be held responsible?

The expulsion should only be limited to the officials or members who violated the principles. Lobbying or bribery cannot involve the entire community because of its level of illegality. Therefore, expulsion of the whole community will not only be unfair, but also meaningless to them. Moreover, expulsion of the whole community will motivate other individuals to engage in corrupt deals knowing that the punishment will not befall on individuals but on community. Additionally, some members of the community might never report any corruption cases in future given the punishment the whole community may incur. Finally, to ensure continuity of integrity and transparency, every person should carry his/her cross therefore sparing the suffering of innocent people in the community.

References

(n.d). United States Department of Justice Web Site. Web.

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Merriam-Webster Dictionary (n.d). Lobbying. Merriam-Webster Dictionary Web site. Web.

The big business of the Olympics and bribery. (1999). The Washington Post. Web.

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IvyPanda. (2020) 'Lobbying: Ethics, Morality and Legalities'. 28 December.

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IvyPanda. 2020. "Lobbying: Ethics, Morality and Legalities." December 28, 2020. https://ivypanda.com/essays/lobbying-ethics-morality-and-legalities/.

1. IvyPanda. "Lobbying: Ethics, Morality and Legalities." December 28, 2020. https://ivypanda.com/essays/lobbying-ethics-morality-and-legalities/.


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IvyPanda. "Lobbying: Ethics, Morality and Legalities." December 28, 2020. https://ivypanda.com/essays/lobbying-ethics-morality-and-legalities/.

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