Nepal's new anticorruption device: pocketless pants

Thu, 07/02/2009 - 10:21am

Via World Politics Review, Nepal has devised a strategic intervention to cut down on corruption among its airport employees: take away their pockets.

From the AFP in Kathmandu:

“We sent a team to observe the growing complaints about the behaviour of airport authorities and workers towards travellers and we discovered that the reports were true,” said Ishwori Prasad Paudyal, spokesman for the Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA).

“So we decided that airport officials should be given trousers with no pockets. We have directed the ministry of civil aviation to implement our order as soon as possible,” he told AFP.

The question that I want answered is where will they keep their keys? Nepal is pretty progressive for the region, but I'm not sure airport bureaucrats are ready for the man purse.

PIUS UTOMI EKPEI/AFP/Getty Images

Michael Wilkerson | Permalink | | Comments? Login or register


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Bring back the fanny pack!

by doubleplusgood on Mon, 07/06/2009 - 12:19pm

One option would be the good ole fanny pack, though you could hide even more bribes in there.
A better way to go would be belt clips for everything, keys, cell phone etc..

Underwear the easiest pocket

by AUprocrastinator on Mon, 07/06/2009 - 4:39pm

Won't they just try and hide things in their underwear now since they can't have pockets?

Who needs pockets when they can stash bribes even closer to where people can't (or won't want to)find them?

Why not just give rewards for ratting out their fellow airport officials who take bribes... and make it a substatial reward that makes not taking bribes (and telling on their friends)even more attractive.

What dress code?

by panthercat on Mon, 07/06/2009 - 8:25pm

When they discover trousers with no pockets isn't the answer, they'll switch to shorts with baggy underwear and not let them tuck in their shirts and sandals with no socks. When that fails, they'll wear a jockstrap. The women will get to wear a little more. After that, they'll legalize nudity in the workplace. I know it won't happen, but some of the airport employees are probably already asking when they'll be working naked.