Dubai’s ongoing drive to stamp out corruption in its corporate community has been much talked about in the local media and blogosphere. In a recent poll conducted by Emirates247.com, 52 per cent of respondents expressed confidence that the government’s move has positively affected its business reputation.
The “zero-tolerance” policy towards corruption has been viewed by some financial experts as positive.
“Even though it looks negative, it is good. People have faith in the system… This will lead to an increase in investor confidence,” said Dr. Nasser Al Saidi, chief economist at the Dubai international Financial Centre.
The region’s expanding blogosphere has been vocal about the issue. ‘Muscat Confidential’ wrote that “[wherever] there’s a river of cash, someone will always try to divert a bit here and there.”
The blogger added that this “new-found transparency” should spread to other parts of the GCC.
“[It’s all too common to hear how a typical] man on the street in Oman assumes that many [public officials enrich themselves at the expense of the public.] But what is more concerning is the apparent acceptance by many Omanis that such dealing is unsurprising.”
In a post titled “Weeding out corruption”, blogger ‘Life in Dubai’ wrote “the investigations need to be concluded and any prosecutions brought quickly. Justice must be done, but most importantly, it must be seen to be done. We need maximum transparency and publicity.”
This is the same sentiment shared by Emirates247.com reader, Dr Abdul Munim Rasheed, who commented that a thorough coverage of the corruption allegations should be conducted.
‘London Banker’, an anonymous analyst for the online financial resource RGE monitor (www.rgemonitor.com) , said that the recent investigations into alleged corruption within Dubai’s real estate and finance companies may involve specific cases but that it also sends out a very strong signal.
“The subtext of the very public inquiry is a warning to every manager in Dubai to remember that they owe their success and loyalty to the leadership, family and community.”