Ethics and the 4-Way Test

Charter President Sookdeo (Jan) Nathoo, PHF

Jan Nathoo is the Charter President of the Rotary Club of Vacoas which was founded on 29 May, 1991.

Why do we need to be ethical? Why should we not steal, cheat, bribe, cut the throat of others if doing so brings us personal advantages?

As a matter of fact many people do in their daily life practice some form of corruption or other in order to derive personal benefits of course unjustly and at the expense of others. Even developed nations resort to it in order to have a better competitive edge or simply to oust weaker rivals from the market. We all know of at least one economically powerful country which gives favourable tax treatment to encourage payment of illegal commissions in foreign countries because it considers such action to be an efficient way to increase trade.

Most of the time, however, the individuals, companies or countries indulging in corrupt practices camouflage their action in order to make it appear innocuous.

Little do people realize, that a breakdown of honest dealings and the institutionalization of corruption not only bring frustration and misery to innocent people, but also constitute in many instances, the very root cause of national unrest which eventually may burst into rebellions and wars. World history is replete with examples of downtrodden people taking up arms in extreme cases, in order to forestall further exploitation and give vent to their frustration. For the very security of nations therefore for the preservation of peace and democracy, it is essential that ethics be made to permeate the whole fabric of our society. But it is both dangerous and erroneous to view ethics only from the narrow utilitarian stand point.