My impression is that during the formative decades of West German power structures (let's say late Adenauer to early Kohl), the entire surrounding culture of media, regulators and of course politicians and business people themselves, failed to develop an awareness for corruption because everything was so nicely self-regulated by what basically boils down to modesty. In terms of anti-corruption measures it was like that nice village where nobody locks their front door. Now decades of neoliberal ideology have swept away that modesty, greed has slowly shifted from vice to virtue, but the trust is still there. Now working as a deceptive national brand that is quickly crumbling away, without a replacement (reliable countermeasures) in sight.