The Noam Chomsky quote appears to apply to all sorts of societies, businesses and people. One is tempted to add a variation of the theme and say: “For the hypocrites, crimes are those that others commit”. Far too many Brits have been claiming rather jingoistically, and for many years, that Britain could never compete with the massive corruption scandals that “those awful aliens” seem to specialise in.
A few years ago (in 2010), Reuters disseminated this article (excerpt): “Britons love to lecture the world about integrity and the rule of law, but the News of the World phone hacking scandal has laid bare a web of collusion between money, power, media and the police. Far from the innocent, upright democracy of its self-image, Britain is showing a seamy side that anti-corruption campaigners say is getting worse and may be politically explosive as society becomes more unequal due to the financial and economic crises. Behind a facade of probity, London offers a haven for oligarchs and despots, a place where foreign media magnates have bought access to and influence over the government. The scandal engulfing Rupert Murdoch’s media empire has already destroyed a newspaper, cost two top police officers their jobs, seen the arrest of powerful media figures and embarrassed the prime minister and political elite.” This was four years ago. And things have not improved. They have got worse.
London-based banks such as Barclays were seriously embarrassed by the Libor rate-fixing scandal (yet nobody was locked up), and BAE Systems has been investigated over its arms deals (and of course nobody was found guilty). With all of this – and much more (see the Wikipedia box below) – in mind, it is becoming quite clear that corruption, misconduct in high office and pure fraud have in fact become an everyday part of British national life. Richard Garside, director of the Centre for Crime and Justice Studies, said in a presentation: “In Britain it has often been thought that corruption is something that happens in other countries, not ours.”
Enter FIFA. A much-loved and somewhat soft target for the ‘over-informed’ British football insiders.
Enrico Scala, FIFA’s Compliance and Corporate Governance Chief, said this in a recent interview with Switzerland’s “Finanz und Wirtschaft” (Finance and Economy) weekly: “A British newspaper has acquired a cache of data from an employee of a forensic institute that was involved with the matter. Although the paper’s interest was to publish a story about Qatar winning the World Cup hosting rights, all their material has shown thus far is that Bin Hammam manipulated his own election to become FIFA President in 2011. For that, he has already been suspended for life.” And he added ominously: “There are many interests when World Cup hosting rights are at stake.” You can say that again, Mr Chief of Staff of a very special Bid.
Scala’s reference to the stolen (if not hacked), then sold emails that were published as “the scoop of scoops” by a child of the same corporate mother who saw numbers of its naughty sibling’s employees convicted for phone hacking (email hacking scandals will probably be next in Britannia, as if GCHQ needed competition), is unsurprisingly clear, and so far, Scala has not been tainted with the usual “oh well, he’s just another Blatter apologist” title. We have it on good authority that the “forensic institute” Scala mentions, copied, then sold the emails, and is based in the UK. And the employee has a homonymous namesake whose head was chopped off by a British King.
In light of the ongoing “investigations” against FIFA – championed and led by the cash-rich British media (read Australian corporate-theme-tuned) and a handful of side-kicks of foreign (often forked) tongue, but rarely registering interest in many parts of the non-Anglo-Saxon world – one wonders what the real motive for all of this fervour and excitement about FIFA is, when corruption scandals in Britain are certainly “closer to home”, and one would assume so much easier to cover than the machinations of some within football’s governing body.
This website unveiled perhaps the biggest and most revealing ‘stings’ of the sceptered isle’s duplicitous run at winning the big 2018 prize (Zen and the art of dirty tricks). The silence of the follow up by the moneyed media (check their bylines) and the ‘crusaders’ was deafening in the green and not-so-pleasant football land. Though their whisperings were heard all over the media rooms in Brazil. Balls or no balls? Or actually just not in line with the company line? What brave self-monikered crusaders they turned out to be. One feels sorry for the new buffoon floundering in deep and dangerous waters at the top of the English football institution – another decent chap with a decent list of boards on his CV but increasingly flailing his way into the ‘well-meaning but simple’ category in football politics.
But what is unacceptable in all of this, are the generalisations, frequently plastered all over the red top papers of Murdochia and some brain-damaged bloggers in their pathologically personal-agenda driven fabrications (let’s not let the truth get in the way of a good tale chaps). The agenda-setting general consensus of those who “reveal” and “expose” FIFA scandals, is exactly that: “FIFA” scandals. “FIFA is a mafia organisation”, some say. The Mafia would probably be quite insulted to be compared to a handful of greedy old amateurs who have brought an entire organisation into disrepute. FIFA is of course not a Mafia organisation because that would mean that all of its 500 employees have sworn the oath of silence. Have they really? The secretaries, the janitors, the mail office clerks, the cleaners, the IT professionals, the marketing guys, the account executives, the middle managers, the entire management? All of them are Mafia? You don’t say! But of course you do, and you keep doing so.
Or isn’t it rather that there are a number of FIFA executive board members (most now previous) who have engaged in reprehensible, and in some cases seriously felonious conduct? And that there remain a few at this very top level who continue to remain in power despite their past wrongdoings? (A detail too far?) We believe that this is the case but that taking a huge politically tainted brush (motivated by a home-grown agenda?) to defame all those who do the best job they can do at FIFA is perhaps not the most balanced journalistic approach, nor does it really tell the story responsibly. Tainting them the motto “FIFA is Mafia” smacks of school playground bullying just because they think they can.
It may sell an article or two, a repetitive blog or a few thousand more tabloids, but it is as nasty to call an entire group of decent and hard working people by a defamatory name as it is to steal and bribe at the very top of ANY organisation. As the box well shows, there are sufficient targets back home for righteous to chase – balls or no balls (again). But “For the hypocrites, crimes are those that others commit”, isn’t it?
Are the Brits really that much better than those damned aliens?
2000s
– Officegate (2001). Henry McLeish, Labour First Minister of Scotland, failed to refund the House of Commons for income he had received from the sub-let of his constituency office in Glenrothes while still a Westminster MP.
– Keith Vaz, Peter Mandelson and the Hinduja brothers. Mandelson forced to resign again due to misleading statements. (2001)
– Jo Moore. Within an hour of the September 11 attacks, Moore sent an email to the press office of her department suggesting: It’s now a very good day to get out anything we want to bury. Councillors’ expenses? Although prior to the catastrophic collapse of the towers, the phrase “a good day to bury bad news” (not actually used by Moore) has since been used to refer to other instances of attempting to hide one item of news behind a more publicised issue.
– In 2002, Edwina Currie revealed that she had had an affair, beginning in 1984, with John Major before he became Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. This was criticised more harshly than may otherwise have been the case as Major had frequently pushed his Back To Basics agenda, which was taken by the media as a form of moral absolutism.
– The Burrell affair – allegations about the behavior of the British Royal Family and their servants with possible constitutional implications. (2002)
– Ron Davies stands down from Welsh assembly following accusations of illicit gay sex. Mr Davies had claimed he had been badger-watching in the area. (2003)
– The apparent suicide of Dr. David Kelly and the Hutton Inquiry. On 17 July 2003, Kelly, an employee of the Ministry of Defence, apparently committed suicide after being misquoted by BBC journalist Andrew Gilligan as saying that Tony Blair’s Labour government had knowingly “sexed up” the “September Dossier”, a report into Iraq and weapons of mass destruction. The government was cleared of wrongdoing, while the BBC was strongly criticised by the subsequent inquiry, leading to the resignation of the BBC’s chairman and director-general.
– In April 2004, Beverly Hughes was forced to resign as minister for Immigration, Citizenship and Counter Terrorism when it was shown that she had been informed of procedural improprieties concerning the granting of visas to certain categories of workers from Eastern Europe. She had earlier told the House of Commons that if she had been aware of such facts she would have done something about it.
– In 2005, David McLetchie, leader of the Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party is forced to resign after claiming the highest taxi expenses of any MSP. These included personal journeys, journeys related solely with his second job as a solicitor, and Conservative Party business, for example travel to Conservative conferences. Conservative backbench MSP Brian Monteith has the whip withdrawn for briefing against his leader to the Scotland on Sunday newspaper.
– Liberal Democrats Home Affairs spokesman Mark Oaten resigns after it is revealed by the News of the World that he paid rentboys to perform sexual activities on him.
– Tessa Jowell financial allegations (2006). Tessa Jowell, Labour cabinet minister, embroiled in a scandal about a property remortgage allegedly arranged to enable her husband to realise £350,000 from an off-shore hedge fund, money he allegedly received as a gift following testimony he had provided for Silvio Berlusconi in the 1990s. Popularised by the press as “Jowellgate”.
– In March 2006 it emerged that the Labour party had borrowed millions of pounds in 2005 to help fund their general election campaign. While not illegal, on 15 March the Treasurer of the party, Jack Dromey stated publicly that he had neither knowledge of or involvement in these loans and had only become aware when he read about it in the newspapers. A story was running at the time that Dr Chai Patel and others had been recommended for Life peerages after lending the Labour party money. He called on the Electoral Commission to investigate the issue of political parties taking out loans from non-commercial sources. See Cash for Peerages.
– Cash for Honours (2006). Following revelations about Dr Chai Patel and others who were recommended for peerages after lending the Labour party money, the Treasurer of the party, Jack Dromey said he had not been involved and did not know the party had secretly borrowed millions of pounds in 2005. He called on the Electoral Commission to investigate the issue of political parties taking out loans from non-commercial sources.
– In November 2007, it emerged that more than £400,000 had been accepted by the Labour Party from one person through a series of third parties, causing the Electoral Commission to seek an explanation. Peter Watt resigned as the General Secretary of the party the day after the story broke and was quoted as saying that he knew about the arrangement but had not appreciated that he had failed to comply with the reporting requirements.
– On 24 January 2008, Peter Hain resigned his two cabinet posts (Secretary of State for Work and Pensions and Secretary of State for Wales) after the Electoral Commission referred donations to his Deputy Leadership campaign to the police.
– Derek Conway (2008). Conservative Party MP found to have reclaimed salaries he had paid to his two sons who had in fact not carried out the work to the extent claimed. Ordered to repay £16,918, suspended from the House of Commons for 10 days and removed from the party whip.
– Cash for Influence (2009). Details of covertly recorded discussions with 4 Labour Party peers which their ability to influence legislation and the consultancy fees that they charge (including retainer payments of up to £120,000) were published by The Sunday Times.United Kingdom parliamentary expenses scandal (2009), following the disclosure of widespread actual and alleged misuse of the permitted allowances and expenses claimed by Members of Parliament and attempts by MPs and peers to exempt themselves from Freedom of Information legislation.
2010s
– The Iris Robinson scandal in which First Minister of Northern Ireland Peter Robinson stepped aside for six weeks in January 2010 following revelations of his wife’s involvement in an extramarital affair, her attempted suicide and allegations that he had failed to properly declare details of loans she had procured for her lover to develop a business venture.
– The 2010 Cash for Influence Scandal, in which undercover reporters for the Dispatches television series posed as political lobbyists offering to pay Members of Parliament to influence policy.
– On 29 May 2010 Chief Secretary to the Treasury David Laws resigned from the Cabinet and was referred to the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards after the Daily Telegraph newspaper published details of Laws claiming around £40,000 in expenses on a second home owned by a secret partner between 2004 and 2009 whilst House of Commons rules have prevented MPs from claiming second home expenses on properties owned by a partner since 2006. By resigning Laws became the shortest serving Minister in modern British political history with less than 18 days service as a Cabinet Minister.
– On 14 October 2011 Secretary of State for Defence Liam Fox resigned from the Cabinet after he “mistakenly allowed the distinction between [his] personal interest and [his] government activities to become blurred” over his friendship with Adam Werrity.
– Conservative Party ‘Cash for Access’ scandal, March 2012.In April 2012 Conservative Party MP and culture secretary Jeremy Hunt came under pressure to resign as a result of his closeness to Rupert Murdoch’s media empire and alleged corruption in dealing with Murdoch’s bid for News Corporation’s takeover of BSkyB.
– In October 2012 Andrew Mitchell resigned from his post as Chief Whip following allegations made about his conduct during an altercation with police at Downing Street on 19 September, the incident becoming known as “plebgate”.
– The 2013 Labour Party Falkirk candidate selection, which began following the announcement that the incumbent MP Eric Joyce was to step down at the 2015 General Election, erupted into a scandal after allegations were made on the significant infiltration of the selection process by the trade union Unite, currently the Labour Party’s largest financial backer.
– In April 2014 Maria Miller, the Culture Secretary, resigned following pressure relating to the results of an investigation into her past expenses claims.
For the record and especially for those who are more obsessed by the byline than thinking about the content, you can contact the writer of this story at moc.l1734895541labto1734895541ofdlr1734895541owedi1734895541sni@n1734895541osloh1734895541cin.l1734895541uap1734895541. And good luck with that.