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  • As President-elect Donald Trump transitions into the White House, critics are already

  • fearful that the businessman-turned politician may use his newfound power to make himself

  • and his family even richer than they already are.

  • Some worry that having Trump’s children run his business could ultimately lead to

  • them making deals with foreign governments, allegedly independent of the President, but

  • using his influence nonetheless.

  • This sort of scenario has been likened to a “kleptocracy”, so what does this mean,

  • and who are some of the world’s worst kleptocrats?

  • Well, in short, a kleptocracy is a pejorative term used to describe a system of government

  • where the leader, or thekleptocratuses the state to enrich their own life.

  • This is done at the expense of the country’s population, which in most cases of documented

  • kleptocracies, is often in poverty or near it.

  • The termkleptois greek forthieves”, and the wordkleptocracymeansrule

  • by thieves”.

  • A large number of world leaders can be pointed to as kleptocrats, and in 2004, Transparency

  • International released a Global Corruption Report, detailing which world leaders had

  • syphoned the most money from their country.

  • Although all the leaders have since been removed from office, or left of their own accord,

  • the amount of stolen money is noteworthy.

  • At the top of the list is Indonesia’s former president, Suharto.

  • Over his more than 3-decade-reign, he is alleged to have stolen as much as 35 billion dollars,

  • or roughly 4% of the entire country’s GDP.

  • It is alleged that the president’s family held a virtual monopoly over any construction

  • or development being done in the country.

  • International companies would compete for excessively priced contracts, which would

  • ultimately be paid by the government.

  • But the actual people doing the work would be connected to some member of Suharto’s

  • family, thereby making sure than any construction would result in more money for the family.

  • This form of corruption was so standardized that it was reportedly easier for a project

  • to get built if it was connected to Suharto, because even though it would often be more

  • expensive, it would also be prioritized.

  • Another notable kleptocrat was Jean-Claude Duvalier [doo-vahl-YAY], the former president

  • of Haiti from 1971 until he was overthrown in 1986 and forced into exile.

  • Not only did Duvalier syphon as much as $800 million dollars, according to Transparency

  • International, he spent state funds on many personal expenses.

  • In one case, he allegedly spent $3 million dollars on a wedding for himself.

  • Worse yet, Duvalier’s family was implicated in trafficking narcotics through the government,

  • and even allegedly selling organs and limbs taken on the black market just to pad the

  • family’s bank account.

  • At the time, Haiti was one of the most poverty stricken countries in the world, and Jean-Claude’s

  • reign only left the country worse off than it began.

  • Often included among kleptocrats is current Russian President Vladimir Putin.

  • One former fund manager in Russia has alleged that Putin’s real personal wealth is close

  • to 200 billion dollars, built on the back of corruption in government.

  • For example, one official recounted running a program collecting money from wealthy donors

  • to be spent on healthcare.

  • Instead the money was diverted to build a $1 billion-dollar private palace for Putin.

  • Other, more direct deals have included reports of Putin secretly allowing an oil company

  • to be the sole provider of oil to a major airport, in exchange for a 4% stake in the

  • company itself.

  • Although not substantiated, rumors of corruption and money frequently changing hands would

  • be nothing new for the Putin regime, nor for Russia in general.

  • Kleptocracies are common in developing parts of the world where there is little accountability

  • in government, and leaders often wield absolute power.

  • Although the United States does not fit this description, many are still concerned about

  • a potential kleptocracy under President-elect Donald Trump.

  • If you're like me and love history, science and exploration, you should check out Discover

  • Go where you can binge watch all seasons current and past of your favorite Discovery Channel

  • shows.

  • Check out the link in the description below to learn more.

  • Trump’s businesses have been the focus of potential corruption in his administration.

  • So, how would Trump navigate the legal grey area of running his business and being the

  • president?

  • Is he even allowed to do that?

  • Find out, in this video.

  • The ethics in government act in 1978 does not require that the president sell or change

  • how they handle their private businesses.

  • In fact, only unelected officials who serve in the executive branch are prohibited from

  • a business-based conflict of interest.

  • Thanks for watching Seeker Daily.

  • Don't forget to like and subscribe for more videos every day.

As President-elect Donald Trump transitions into the White House, critics are already

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什麼是貪汙犯,最臭名昭著的是誰? (What Is A Kleptocrat & Who Are The Most Notorious?)

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    BH 發佈於 2021 年 01 月 14 日
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