Wednesday, December 06, 2006
$9 billion unaccounted for
Finance
Corruption is the "second Iraqi insurgency," according to US auditors of stalled reconstruction efforts in the war-torn country. The Special Inspector-General for Iraq Reconstruction (Sigir) estimates that more than $4 billion gushes from government coffers annually. Sigir spokesman Jim Mitchell told Gulf News from Washington, "If you could wave a magic wand and solve the insurgency you would still be left with corruption. And for things to get moving, this must be sorted out.'' A US government report estimates that about $100 million a year is finding its way to insurgents. "When trucks are carrying oil by road because pipelines have been blown up or in disrepair, it is difficult to think that smuggling and selling oil on the black market is not taking place," Mitchell said.
The corruption is a legacy of both Saddam's rule and American lack of oversight, incompetence and fraud. Sigir had earlier discovered a massive black hole in state finances where nearly $9 billion could not be accounted for. The money was flown in to Iraq in US military transport planes, unloaded by machinery, and handed over in bundles to ministries by the Coalition Provisional Authority headed by Paul Bremer. The cash was meant to be a quick fix to stimulate the Iraqi economy. "It was given to ministries to pay delayed salaries, and get them functioning properly again," Mitchell said. Much of this money is unaccounted for.
