IT was a very rare occurrence in the past to investigate ministers or senior government officials in a corruption case. The only exception here may be the Jeddah flooding disaster of 2009 in which many citizens lost their lives and a lot of properties were destroyed. In this particular case officials of the Jeddah municipality, including former mayors, were interrogated. The rain disaster was coupled with other cases related to the forgery of land deeds to illegally acquire government land. A number of notaries public were investigated in this particular case. With the exception of these cases, the senior government officials were seldom investigated for embezzling public funds or accepting bribes. They were never asked how they collected their large fortunes. The ministers and senior officials were not asked about their substandard performances that might have caused the loss of innocent lives or led to a disaster of any kind. Needless to say they were never investigated or punished for corruption. Most of those who were interrogated in corruption cases were the junior government officials. The highest among them was a director of a branch government department. It was as if the corruption was only limited to the junior officials. It had never gone up to reach the top officials. No doubt that the officials in the past were enjoying some sort of immunity that protected them against questioning. Therefore, they remained in their positions for years on. They were never asked no matter how low their performance was or how much money they had stolen. The former officials used to act as if they owned their positions. Today the situation has changed 180 degrees. There is no immunity any more for any minister or high-ranking official. There is no guarantee for them to remain for long years in their positions. They cannot be certain that they will remain on their seats for a few months, let alone long years. Today, survival is for the fittest. The ministers who remain in office are those who deliver. The fittest are the ministers who will better serve the homeland and the citizens. The ministers who will be sure to remain in office are those who will not attack the citizens but rather treat them with respect that will preserve their dignity. We are certain that in the reign of Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman, the first warrior against corruption, no minister or senior official will get away with foul play. Strict measures will immediately be taken against ministers and officials suspected of corruption. They will be investigated and if the case against them is proved with solid evidence, they will be punished. During this reign, the corrupt is never safe. Those who have piled huge amounts of money in their bank accounts or put away immense fortunes from public funds will never have peace of mind. The corrupt who have deposited wealth that might be enough even for the seventh generation of their grandchildren were sure that they would remain in office to enjoy what they have stolen. By investigating and severely punishing the corrupt, we will be annihilating this malice from our lives for good. We will not only get rid of the corrupt officials but make them examples to those who may replace them. However, if the corrupt official is sure that all the punishment he may get for his corruption or substandard performance is relief from office without being questioned or punished, it will be extremely difficult for us to fight corruption or get rid of it forever.
