ONE IN nine Slovak households has been asked for a bribe during 2010, according to a barometer of corruption that Transparency International conducted in 87 countries around the world including, for the first time this year, Slovakia.
The barometer of corruption, which maps people’s personal experience of bribery and corruption, was conducted by Transparency International Slovakia in November 2010 and the results published on December 9, 2010, International Anti-Corruption Day.
Around 72 percent of Slovak households subjected to demands did not even report that they had been asked for a bribe, mainly because they believe that it makes no sense (31 percent), or because they are afraid of revenge (26 percent), it is time-consuming, or they do not know how to proceed.
TIS head Gabriel Šipoš pointed out that one of the most negative elements in the results was that many Slovaks regarded a request for a bribe as a usual business transaction.
According to the survey, one quarter of households bribed someone in a medical facility in the last 12 months, 16 percent did so at land registry offices and at offices that issue confirmations and permissions.
While one third of respondents said their bribe was less than €20, as many as 7 percent said they had paid more than €330.
