Public Administration in Post-Communist Countries

344  ◾  Public Administration in Post-Communist Countries

corruption. In Mongolia, “politicians ‘buy’ an election nomination by making a contribution to

the party fund and then spending substantial amounts of money in the run for office. e only way

to recoup their ‘investment’ is by seeking private benefits from the public office they attain. Politics

and business become increasingly merged, and it is a widely accepted fact that most members of

Parliament and the government have business interests in the sectors they are supposed to oversee”

(Pratt and Damiran, Chapter 14). In Kazakhstan, according to Ibrayeva and Nezhina, political

corruption is characterized by the “formation of political elite groups, which consist of nation’s

titular ethn