The Patrimonialism of Corruption and the Corruption of Patrimonialism: An Analysis of the Bases of Normative Deviations in Sierra Leone

Studies show that Sierra Leoneans hated corruption. However, most of the population would simultaneously be engaged in corrupt practices or taking advantage of its prevalence. This chapter seeks to understand these contradictory trends by arguing that two moralities exist here. One draws from what I call ‘bureaucratism’ and the other from patrimonialism. Bureaucratism denotes a preference for and a disposition that extol legal-rational authority and bureaucracy as the ethically ideal and organisationally superior. Thus, patrimonialism as a deviation from that ideal is immoral and corrupt. I argue that this perception of the total ‘badness’ of patrimonialism limits understanding of the apparent contradictory stances of the populace about corruption. I distinguish between two types of patrimonialism: moral patrimonialism and rogue patrimonialism. Moral patrimonialism is based on the patron giving back to the community. Rogue patrimonialism is where the patron increasingly restricts his largesse, spending it only on himself or his immediate family. Citizens consider this illegitimate. Immoral patrimonialism has increased in recent decades. Because of this growth, there is an increasing convergence of condemnation of resource holders and diverting by patrimonialists and bureaucratists.