In spite of billions of dollars spent on reconstruction following the decade-long conflict, many neighborhoods lack sewerage systems and trash collection services. In some settlements, there are barely any streets. Water is also a big problem, locals pointed out.“Nobody drinks the city water because we know it’s not clean. Since the war, I’ve had to rely on bottled water. What comes out of the tap is contaminated and makes us sick. How can we drink it?” local resident Umm Muhammad indicated. Central power is another issue, with the system sometimes on for as little as two hours a day. Electrician from Baghdad Abu Meria is sure the new government is to blame for the chaos that reigning in his homeland.“It’s the citizens who suffer in the end, not the government. The services are so bad and the power system has really deteriorated. There were billions spent on fixing the grid but there’s little to show for it.”Abu Meria now earns four times more than before the war due to the frequent failures and blackouts all over the city.As RT’s Lucy Kafanov also discovered, the crumbling infrastructure is closely entangled with rampant corruption.Transparency International group has ranked Iraq as the eighth most-corrupt state in the world. In the latest scandal, the country’s Electricity Ministry was involved in a $1.7 billion fraud case.On the backdrop of this, most Iraqis remain impoverished, struggling to make their ends meet. In the Al Tajiat landfill, on the outskirts of Baghdad, people are actually forced to live – without any proper living conditions.“There are no schools for the kids here, no electricity, no real houses. To get a drink of water we have to travel 4km. It’s very difficult to live here.” Watch RT’s Lucy Kafanov’s full report. … Read More
Rosbank CEO charged with extortion
Investigators announced they have opened an official criminal case against Vladimir Golubkov and his senior VP Tamara Polyanitsyna.The video footage shows armed police forcefully entering the bank, jumping counters and cornering Golubkov in his office. He stood behind his desk, which had several piles of 5,000 rouble ($150) notes stacked on it.The investigators said the cash totaled 5 million roubles ($160,000), and the video shows the banknotes carefully laid out across the desk.”Golubkov demanded, via his subordinate Polyanitsyna, more than $1 million from a businessman to extend the maturity and reduce the interest rate on a multi-million dollar loan,” the Investigative Committee alleges.Golubkov’s lawyer, Dmitry Kharitonov, claimed his client is innocent: “He is being held for 48 hours by the Investigative Committee and faces up to seven years if convicted,” Kharitonov said.According to various media reports on Thursday, an executive at a car dealership informed on Golubkov after he paid several instalments of a bribe to restructure an $80 million loan.Many western banks have already packed up and left the Russian market, dominated by state giants VTB and Sberbank. Foreign banks have complained about a lack of competition and an even playing field, and the recent corruption probe could result in further retraction of international investors in Russia.47-year old Golubkov became CEO of Rosbank in 2008.Many bankers have voiced suspicions about the authenticity of the sting, and some have even suggested it was a set up.”I know him to be a good man,” Garegin Tosunyan, president of the Association of Russian Banks, told Reuters. “The accusations simply don’t fit – although the law enforcement authorities are entitled to their theory and to investigate.””If you ask me, it is unlikely that he would stoop to such commercial bribery. I hope that investigators will consider the possibility that he was deliberately set up.”Russian tycoon and a leader of the Civil Platform Party Mikhail Prokhorov also stuck up for Golubkov and signed a petition to the court not to arrest the man, giving his personal guarantees.“I know him very well. He has always been an honest and professional man, and I am sure he will not hide anywhere,” Prokhorov advocated. … Read More
Law prohibiting Russian officials owning assets abroad comes into force
Top state officials at different levels – from heads of country’s biggest corporations like Gazprom or Lukoil to the bosses of the country’s key state bodies like the Central Bank, can be punished if they, or their spouses or underage children, have any sort of financial asset abroad.The law aims to provide better national security, as well as spur investment in the domestic economy and fight corruption, according to Kremlin website. It applies to people “who are duty-bound to take decisions concerning sovereignty and national security of the Russian Federation.”The bill was approved by the Russian Parliament’s upper house, the Federation Council in April.Wednesday’s signing of the law leaves 3 months for Russian officials to dispose of all their bank holdings, bonds, shares and any other financial instruments. Property, however, remains untouched by the ban, provided officials declare them and explain how they obtained the money for the purchase.Some officials chose to prepare well beforehand, with Russian billionaire Senator Suleiman Kerimov moving his business assets to a Swiss – registered charitable fund. First Deputy PM Igor Shuvalov was also among the “early birds”, as he has started to transfer his offshore assets from a family trust in the British Virgin Islands back to Russia. … Read More
Charges against daughter of Spanish king are suspended
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A Spanish court has suspended corruption charges brought against the daughter of King Juan Carlos of Spain.
It has been ruled that there is not sufficient evidence that Princess Cristina had been an accomplice in an embezzlement case involving her husband.
Inaki Urdangarin and his former business partner are accused of taking public funds they received and placing them into private businesses they controlled.
When Cristina, 47, was charged last month, it was the first time a member of the royal family had been the subject of criminal proceedings since the monarchy was reinstated in the 1970s.
“We have a Justice system that acts with independence, that respects the laws in all the situations,” said Alberto Ruíz Gallardon, Spanish Justice Minister.
Tuesday’s ruling by the High Court on the island of Mallorca overturned an earlier judgement by the examining magistrate of a lower court, although the charges could be reinstated if new evidence is found, the High Court said.
“The Royal Family initiated a powerful offensive to set a red line between justice and the interests of the state. So the king is not going to be able so say in front of the Spanish people that we are all equal in the eyes of the law,” said Gaspar Llamazares, from the United Left party.
The corruption case along with a long running recession has seen the Spanish monarchy’s popularity plunge to unprecedented levels.
More about: Justice, Monarchy, Spain
Copyright © 2013 euronews
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Afghan Puppet Admits To Secretly Recieving Bags Of Cash From CIA
Afghan President Hamid Karzai admitted top Afghan officials are secretly on the payroll of the CIA after a NY Times report detailed corruption. … Read More
US Justice Department investigating IBM bribery allegations
The US Justice Department is investigating whether IBM violated the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, Bloomberg reported on Friday. In Poland, the probe is examining a transaction that the Polish Central Anti-Corruption Bureau was already in the process of studying, the company said. The DoJ probe comes as IBM is attempting to settle with the SEC over activity in China and South Korea. In March 2011, the company said it had agreed to pay $10 million to settle with the SEC over allegations that it bribed officials to win at least $54 million in government contracts. The alleged bribes in IBM’s SEC case took place from 1998 through 2009 and were made by employees at three subsidiaries of IBM, as well as LG IBM PC Co., a joint venture with LG Electronics Inc., according to the SEC filing. The SEC said cash payments to South Korean officials from 1998 to 2003 totaled $207,000. In China, IBM created “slush funds” at local travel agencies that were used to pay for overseas vacations by government officials, according to the SEC. IBM employees also gave presents, such as cameras and laptop computers, to Chinese officials, according to the complaint. US District Judge Richard Leon, who has had the case under review, said a condition of the deal is that IBM would be required to report any future law enforcement or administrative probes to the court, according to Bloomberg. IBM is cooperating with the investigations, the company said in the filing. The 1977 Foreign Corrupt Practices Act prohibits companies or individuals headquartered in the US from paying bribes to foreign officials in order to win business. At the same time, foreign companies and nationals also can be prosecuted if their corrupt acts were committed in the US. IBM’s filing doesn’t give further detail on the transactions in Argentina, Bangladesh and Ukraine that the DoJ is investigating. Ed Barbini, an IBM spokesman, said in an email on Thursday that the company has a “robust and effective compliance program.”“While we will not comment on the specifics of this investigation, it is noteworthy that many such investigations result in no findings of wrongdoing,” Barbini said. “However, if it turns out that our Business Conduct Guidelines have been violated then we will address it promptly and effectively.” Despite the probe, IBM shares rose 1.4 per cent to $202.39 yesterday in New York. The stock has climbed 5.7 per cent this year. … Read More
Russia’s ruling United Russia party needs real political alternative – Surkov
Speaking at the London School of Economics Surkov said, that such a party that can compete with “United Russia” would be useful for the country, ITAR-TASS reports.”I think that the United Russia party simply has to exist in a competitive environment, it is normal, and now that competition will develop. There is a normal process that reflects the evolution of the society, to the extent in which it took place”, Surkov said, recalling that Russia has a “practically free registration of parties.”The Deputy PM assured that the political system of Russia “keeps up with society.”"In Russia we have a political system that reflects the state of the mentality and the soul of the Russian people,” – Surkov added.The Deputy PM, was also asked about the recent corruption scandal at the Skolkovo foundation, where during searches investigators allegedly found evidence of theft of around $750,000.”Let them prove that these people are guilty of something, we’ll see, if they will prove that or not,” Surkov said.The deputy PM said Skolkovo is one of the “cleanest projects” from the point of view of possible abuse.”For one simple reason, the project is headed by Viktor Vekselberg, one of the richest men in Russia”, said Surkov adding that the President of the Skolkovo Innovation Center is so rich that he would not soil himself for the sake of a few hundred thousand dollars.The Deputy PM admitted that Russia’s economy rests on two pillars, the export of raw materials and importing finished goods. The Skolkovo Innovation Center should reverse this situation by bringing Russia into the world market of ideas and innovation, according to Surkov. He also emphasized that only an “open economy” is able to develop, therefore one of the conditions of work in Skolkovo is the presence of foreign partners.The Skolkovo Innovation Center, or, as dubbed by the mass media ‘the science city’, is a non-profit organization founded in 2010 during the presidency of Dmitry Medvedev and on his initiative. It’s located in the Moscow region and its main objective is to recruit resources capable of conducting modern applied research and creating a comfortable environment for hi-tech companies specializing in such fields as IT, space exploration, energy-saving, nuclear technology and biomedicine. … Read More
