Iraqi Parliamentary "integrity": We need a fund against corruption

It revealed the inclusion of deputies and senior officials, including former and current ministers

Tuesday - 8 Ramadan 1442 AH - 20 April 2021 AD Issue No. [15484]


Amid the worsening living crisis in Iraq ... Children get breakfast for their poor families in a mosque in Baghdad yesterday (AFP)

Baghdad: «Asharq Al-Awsat»

While the "Integrity Committee" in the Iraqi parliament announced what it called a prospective anti-corruption "sula", the agenda of the parliament session scheduled for today did not include the requests that it had announced that the Supreme Judicial Council had submitted to lift the immunity of a number of deputies accused of corruption.

A member of the "Integrity Committee" in Parliament, Karim Abu Souda, said that the committee "has many files that will affect a number of ministers in the previous government, in addition to ministers in the government of (current Prime Minister Mustafa) Al-Kazemi," while a member of the "Legal Committee" in Parliament announced Kazem Al-Shibli, for his part, stated that requests to lift the immunity of MPs accused of corruption cases no longer require a vote in Parliament. In statements to the official news agency in Iraq, Abu Souda confirmed that "fighting corruption and retrieving money stolen by the corrupt needs money," indicating that "there is a tendency to wage a revolution against corruption and to fight it seriously in all institutions." Abu Souda added that "the file of corruption is large and needs coordination between the committees and the competent bodies and the application of the law against everyone who stole public money."

And the Iraqi President, Barham Salih, confirmed earlier last month that the Presidency of the Republic was preparing a legal code on mechanisms to recover "stolen funds" estimated by experts at about $ 250 billion in the period following the fall of the regime of former President Saddam Hussein in 2003. Saleh said In a television interview, "The file of corruption is dangerous and huge and needs broader and deeper treatments," indicating that "with all these challenges there were procedures and courts that worked to rule on important corruption cases." Saleh added that «the presidency of the republic is in the process of developing a legal code that we will negotiate with the House of Representatives, to recover the looted money from Iraq, perhaps it went to capitals and investments abroad». He pointed out that "important measures" are being taken, usually that "striking financial corruption is an essential pillar for establishing security, and without it, security will not be established."

till then; The "Legal Committee" in the Iraqi parliament confirmed that lifting the immunity of any deputy is left to head the House of Representatives, and does not require a voting session. A member of the committee, Kazem Al-Shibli, said in a statement yesterday, Monday, that «the House of Representatives voted earlier in the event of a request by the judiciary to bring in any deputy for the purpose of the investigation of corruption cases in which he was authorized to chair the Council». Al-Shibli added that «lifting the immunity of a deputy has become left to the Presidency of the Council of Representatives without the need to hold a voting session».

For its part, the "Integrity Commission" in Iraq announced that it had issued 58 arrest and summon orders against a minister, two deputies, and special ranks. The Investigation Department of the "Commission" said, in a statement yesterday, that there were "58 arrest warrants and summoning officials during the month of March", explaining that "these orders included two current and former members of Parliament, a former minister, and a former undersecretary." She added that «the arrest and recruitment orders included a current and former governor, as well as (25) general managers; Among them are current and former, and two qaimqamas, ”pointing out that“ 22 members of the provincial councils are included in these orders ”.

It is noteworthy that the procedures carried out by the Anti-Corruption Committee headed by Lieutenant General Ahmed Abu Ragheef are carrying out its duties in light of legal arrest warrants issued by the Iraqi judiciary, and it operates independently of the work of the "Integrity Commission", which is one of the executive bodies in the field of fighting corruption. The "Anti-Corruption Committee" arrested the day before yesterday, the prominent politician and leader of the "solution" party, Dr. Jamal Al-Karbouli. Political and media circles considered Karbouli to be the most senior official who had fallen into the hands of the "committee". This caused concern among various political circles that the "committee" had begun to harass those described in Iraq as "big whales."

In this context, Dr. Ghaleb Al-Daami, a professor of media at the “Ahl Al-Bayt College” in Kufa, told Asharq Al-Awsat that “the committee’s work has begun to capture the concerns of public opinion in Iraq, and may spread hope among the Iraqi citizen. It is not out of revenge on one side or the other, but because Iraq really needs strict measures in terms of combating corruption, ”indicating that“ the arrest of the head of the party (Jamal al-Karbouli) and perhaps the circle close to him is the first time since 2003 and to the day that it takes place Like this ». He added that «this process; And if there is evidence indicating the smell of political assassinations between some parties, especially the Sunni blocs; In the end, it is at the service of society and public opinion; This made the vision of public opinion change in a positive direction to the government's steps in this field.

Al-Daami explained that “this process has another important aspect; It is that it has achieved a great shock to the corruption mafias in Iraq, and it will probably make many of them back off from corruption, ”explaining that“ this process gave a strong impetus to the Al-Kazemi government in extending its power over the corruption files that it was silent about for the past 18 years. ” It moved public opinion towards exercising its true role in this field. ”


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