Once Upon a Time in Mathieves

Once upon a time, in a faraway land, there was a country called Mathieves. It was a place where the king and his loyal cabinet ministers, along with the managing directors of state-owned companies, had discovered a very innovative way to make money mostly for themselves.
In this magical kingdom, corruption wasn’t considered a crime. It was more like a sport and everyone at the top was a professional player.
Now, whenever an MD (Managing Director) of a company was caught red handed, the punishment depended on the “level of damage” caused. Sounds fair, doesn’t it? Well, let’s see.
If an MD’s corruption pushed a company into bankruptcy, the harsh and terrifying punishment was… a four-day sightseeing excursion between Hulhumale and Male. (Apparently, staring at traffic jams and half-finished flats was enough to teach them a lifetime lesson.)
If an MD was caught misusing company funds to buy shares, invest in other businesses, or build his own little empire, the punishment was even more brutal a 12-day travel restriction. But don’t worry, it wasn’t too harsh. He was simply banned from traveling to Yemen, Ethiopia, and Burma.
The good news? He was still free to visit Dubai, London, Singapore, and Thailand, where his real bank accounts were waiting with open arms.
And so, justice in Mathieves was always served with a smile, a plane ticket, and sometimes even a holiday package.
What a lovely, fair, and balanced justice system indeed!