Teachers and nurses often do not show up for work, but that does not mean that performance would improve much if they did. Policemen may stop asking for bribes, but that will not make them any better at catching criminals and preventing crime.
一些人也许会说，减少腐败包括了建立能力国家；善是在斗恶的过程中创造出来的。但果真如此吗？教师和护士常常不在工作中露面，但这并不意味着如果他们出工绩效就能得到改善。警察也许会停止索贿，但这并不能让他们更好地抓捕罪犯、阻止犯罪。减少补偿性支付（side-payments）并不意味着管理特许经营合同或征税的能力。