Around 67 percent of Romanians believe corruption increased last year in their country, while only six percent agree that the level of corruption went down, according to a survey conducted at the request of the Association for Implementing Democracy, quoted by Mediafax newswire.

Romanians consider the Parliament the most corrupt institution - 87 percent of the respondents said that there is corruption among its employees. The institution with the highest degree of trust is the army. Around 55 percent of the respondents said they trust the army, followed by the education institutions – with 51 percent, the gendarmerie – 47 percent, public health institutions - 37 percent, and local governments - 34 percent.

Around 60 percent of the people surveyed believe that one can’t be successful in Romania without being corrupt, while 42 percent believe one can succeed without being corrupt, according to the survey. However, 85 percent of the respondents said that, should they have a public function, they would not try to get rich by means of corruption.

According to Transparency International’s 2011 Corruption Perceptions Index, Romania remains among the most corrupt in Europe, and its 2011 results have slid since 2010. The index ranks Romania 25th out of the 27 European countries, with a 3.6 score, and 75th among the total of 182 countries that were monitored, on a par with China. See the report here.

Irina Popescu, irina.popescu@romania-insider.com

(photo source: Sxc.hu)