Author: Donjeta Rexhbogaj
In Kosovo, corruption is not just a word we hear in the news or a statistic mentioned in local and international reports. But for most of us, it has a much simpler and more everyday face, because it is a feeling and experience that accompanies us everywhere, starting from the municipal counter, to the hospital, the university, and even the offices that exist to serve citizens.
It's the feeling you get when you wait days for a simple document, when you send dozens of emails that no one reads, or when someone easily tells you: "find someone you know." This is a very widespread form of corruption, which is not measured only by money, but by connections. It is the corruption that teaches us that to be treated with respect, you have to know someone; that turns every public process into a test of patience, which affects the dignity and trust of the citizen.
I have experienced this reality myself. For an administrative document, I had to send dozens of emails, wait for days without a response, call numbers that never answer, contact people on social networks and, in the end, look for someone who “knows someone”. This was not an isolated case; it was a reflection of a system that rewards connections, not order and equality. So, another corruption, the small, silent, everyday one, that directly affects the lives of each of us.
Essentially, the problem is not only legal, but systemic. Public administration does not have a service culture, because it was never built as a service. Public employees do not see the citizen as the goal of their work, so even in the absence of public accountability, we are forced to adapt to their pace and indifference. In every sector, from education to health, from municipalities to central agencies, the same pattern is repeated – lack of transparency, unnecessary delays and poor communication.
Reports from local and international organizations, such as BIRN, show that many cases of corruption, even at the highest level, end without effective punishment and judicial processes are dragged out. Of the dozens of cases monitored, almost none have a final verdict from the court. In a country where even major crimes are punished with delay or oblivion, what hope can a citizen have for a simple document that takes weeks to arrive?
This phenomenon has created a bitter reality and, under these conditions, many people give up and inevitably seek an "alternative solution." This is the corruption that destroys the citizen's trust in the state, because every delay, every "wait a little longer," every "I don't know who has the signature" is a silent form of abuse of power.
We learn to bypass the system rather than improve it. This silence, sometimes forced and sometimes self-accepted, is the link that keeps a sick system alive. But this system is not hopeless and change can start from small things, such as transparency, accountability, respect for the citizen. But this requires an internal shift in the way we understand public service. Public institutions must start measuring their success not by how many documents they produce, but by how many citizens are satisfied. Clear transparency mechanisms must be created, where every delay has a documented reason.
A simple but effective idea would be for every public institution to have an accessible website where citizens can report delays or unprofessional treatment and those reports to be published with solutions. Such a form of accountability would create positive pressure for officials to perform their duties with dedication. Also, training on the culture of public service should be invested so that every employee understands that his salary is paid for by the taxes of those he serves.
Education is another key pillar. In schools and universities, we must openly discuss corruption, not just as a crime, but as a wrong way of life that destroys social trust. Younger generations must learn that demanding accountability is not disrespect or arrogance, but a civic duty.
Ultimately, the fight against corruption is much more than a fight against a few individuals and will not end with a court decision or a single reform. It is a confrontation with a mentality that has tired us all and an attempt to restore dignity to the relationship between the citizen and the state. We can all know how difficult it is not to give up when every simple step turns into a bureaucratic obstacle, but I believe that change begins right there: when you refuse to be part of the game.
We don't need more excuses, but more voices saying: “this can't be normal.” The corruption that teaches us to be silent can be defeated when we learn to speak up.
* “This editorial was prepared within the framework of the anti-corruption essay competition, which KDI has conducted among young people, including participants in the Anti-Corruption Academies, organized in all regions of the country. The positions and assessments in the editorial are authorial, and do not necessarily reflect the positions of KDI and Telegraf. Meanwhile, the activities developed within the framework of this program are supported by the Swedish Government, through the Embassy of Sweden in Pristina.
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