Saturday, February 10, 2024
UN to investigate claims of corruption in Iraq aid project, 10 FEB
UN to investigate claims of corruption in Iraq aid project, 10 FEB
Guardian report found staff allegedly sought bribes in return for helping people win deals as part of $1.5bn construction programme
Simona Foltyn Mon 5 Feb 2024 07.09 EST
The UN Development Programme (UNDP) is dispatching a team to Iraq to assess allegations of corruption in its $1.5bn (£1.2bn) construction programme following a Guardian investigation.
According to an internal document obtained by the Guardian, the UNDP’s administrator, Achim Steiner, has “commissioned a management review and assessment of the allegations” after revelations its staff were allegedly taking kickbacks in return for helping business people obtain lucrative construction contracts.
The six-page document, sent to donors on 25 January, aimed to reassure western capitals that the UNDP could hold itself to account through internal oversight mechanisms. At a subsequent meeting, several donors pressed the agency to carry out an external review to help restore credibility.
An Iraqi government official with detailed knowledge of the matter said the country’s prime minister, Mohammed Shia al-Sudani, had ordered the country’s integrity commission to launch a separate investigation.
The UNDP document said the agency had previously referred 136 cases to its Office of Audit and Investigations (OAI) in relation to the reconstruction programme – the majority of which were against suppliers rather than employees. It said 56 were substantiated, of which 52 were related to vendors who subsequently faced sanction. The document provided no further detail on the remaining four cases, or whether any disciplinary action had been taken.
The brief said the UNDP was “committed to fostering a work culture and environment where all UNDP personnel can report wrongdoing without fear of retaliation”.
Magnifying glass over the United Nations Development Programme UNDP company logo
UN staff on £1.5bn Iraq aid project ‘demanding bribes’
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However, since the Guardian’s report, more UNDP employees have come forward with allegations. They described a “culture of fear” and impunity that they said extended across the agency’s Middle East offices. They accused UNDP managers who had developed close relationships with government counterparts of weaponising those ties to shield themselves from accountability while retaliating against staff who spoke out.
One person who worked at an office in the Middle East said they tried to raise the alarm over hundreds of thousands of dollars being channelled to an organisation run by a government official, but that superiors “signalled very quickly that we ought not to get involved”. When they reported the case to the OAI, the person was told they had not provided sufficient documentation for the investigation to go ahead. “The OAI doesn’t work at all. It’s completely dysfunctional,” the person said.
At UNDP Iraq, one employee filed complaints to the ombudsman and OAI alleging mismanagement and bullying by a supervisor, only to watch senior management turn against them. “They told me, either I drop my grievance or my upcoming performance review would not look good and I would be let go,” they said. The Guardian has seen copies of the complaints, but is not making further details public on this and other cases to protect the whistleblowers.
Another employee who worked for the UNDP said they were threatened by a former manager after voicing concerns over wasteful spending. “Straight away, they said: ‘You know where the door is and you won’t have a job if you continue to raise things,’” they recalled. The manager’s close ties to government officials made them untouchable. “They are in each other’s pockets, and it’s enabled from the top,” the employee said.
Last week, the UNDP’s resident representative in Iraq, Auke Lootsma, wrote in a staff email that the Guardian investigation was “very unfortunate”, adding that his office was “working with UN headquarters to refute these unfair and unjust allegations”. Lootsma asked staff to “refrain from any comment”.
In a statement to the Guardian, a UNDP spokesperson said allegations that employees were threatened with retaliation for reporting wrongdoing were “completely at odds with UNDP’s commitment to accountability, integrity and openness to scrutiny”.
The statement said the allegations were not specific enough to be addressed individually and that the agency would “welcome more details to allow the appropriate independent channels to assess further”.
It added that the UNDP’s ethics office had invested heavily in training staff on issues related to conflict of interest and protection against retaliation, and that the OAI conducted audits and investigations “independently from UNDP management or any outside party and in line with UNDP’s whistleblowing and retaliation policies”. LINK
"ANALYSIS OF IRAQ NEWS: "TAKES YOU OUT OF CHAPTER VII... AND PUTS YOU IN AN INTERNATIONAL BASKET!!!"" BY FRANK26, 10 FEB
KTFA:
Frank26: "TAKES YOU OUT OF CHAPTER VII... AND PUTS YOU IN AN INTERNATIONAL BASKET!!!"......F26
Observer: Ending the mission of the United Nations office in Iraq takes Iraq out of Chapter Seven
2/7/2024
The United Nations office in Iraq takes Iraq out of Chapter Seven
Information / Baghdad..
On Wednesday, political observer Sabah Al-Ugaili called on Prime Minister Muhammad Shia Al-Sudani to end the work of the United Nations representation in Iraq, indicating that “if this matter were achieved, it would remove Iraq from Chapter Seven.”
Al-Ugaili told Al-Maalouma, “The time is right for Sudanese to ask the Secretary-General of the United Nations to end the work of its representation in Iraq, especially after Plasschaert announced the end of its mission in Iraq.”
He added, “Plasschaert’s request to end its mission and the Chinese representative’s recognition of the existence of a state of political and economic stability in Iraq gives Al-Sudani the opportunity to ask the Secretary-General of the United Nations to end the work of the United Nations office in Iraq, or at least reduce it, and then Iraq will exit Chapter Seven.”
The representative of the Secretary-General of the United Nations, Jeanine Plasschaert, had asked the Secretary-General of the United Nations that it was her mission in Iraq during her periodic briefing at the UN Security Council yesterday, Tuesday.
It is noteworthy that Iraq has been subject since 1990 to Chapter Seven of the United Nations Charter, which was imposed on it after Saddam’s regime invaded the State of Kuwait in August of the same year. This clause allows the use of force against Iraq as it constitutes a threat to international security, in addition to freezing large amounts of its financial assets in Iraq. International banks to pay compensation to those affected by the invasion. LINK
The Oil Parliament calls for granting dues to the oil-producing governorates, 10 FEB
The Oil Parliament calls for granting dues to the oil-producing governorates
The governorates that produce oil should receive their rightful share of the current year’s budget, according to a call made on Friday by the Parliamentary Oil, Gas, and Natural Resources Committee.
“The budget includes a law that provides financial dues to oil-producing governorates in the event that the price of oil rises above the amount specified in the budget, but this matter has not been implemented,” committee member Bassem Al-Gharibawi stated.
He said, “There is an urgent need for action by Parliament, especially the Finance and Strategic Planning Committees, to follow up on the dues of the oil-producing governorates in order to ensure that they obtain their dues within the budget.”
He clarified, saying, “The Parliamentary Oil Committee did not approach the federal government regarding this matter, but it moved toward the Ministry of Oil to find out the extent of its implementation of the government program and curriculum.” He confirmed, “There are actual parliamentary movements to ensure that the dues reach the producing governorates.”
" WHAT THE GURUS SAY" BY HERNAN ROBERT BRAVO, (ENGLISH & SPANISH), 10 FEB
Friday February 9, 2024
GURUS: THEY SAY
Opinions of the Iraqi dinar guru
Bruce: He says.
— We got information... that indicates that this will happen very soon... So there is a 4-letter word that we don't use that often. …from…main sources…we will trade on or before Friday morning…Looking very good…I think this could be a very interesting week, from the weekend into next week…
Mark Zee: Says
Question:…does the HCL…have to go through the RV?
— MarkZ: From day 1 they told me that within a few hours of seeing the HCL pass... (HCL = HYDROCARBONS LAW), we would see a new rate... (REVALUATED IRAQI DINAR Rate), so I keep looking for it. .. but we don't necessarily have to have it.
Greetings
Hernán Robert Hbravo
TRANSLATION IN SPANISH
Viernes 09 Febrero 2024
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Frank26 [Bank story] This time we didn't go down, we just called [the bank]... We said we want to see if we can exchange some cu...
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Bank appointment for Currency EXCHANGE Instructions/Checklist Bank Name_________________________________________ Bank 800#____________...
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Walkingstick All these meetings that the CBI had with all these agencies that were helping them with their monetary reform are done. Al...