Are the Afghanistan people linked to the rampant corruption in the reconstruction project?”
Kabul, Afghanistan (CNN) — In the Afghan capital’s department of motor vehicles, the simple act of registering a car can turn into days, even weeks, of waiting and frustration. Unless you pay off the right people. Mohammad Zarif Formolly had been waiting for a month to obtain documentation for his vehicle. Another man, who identified himself only as Jamaludin, traveled 50 miles from Logar province and had been waiting for three days. The chaotic outdoor space that passes for a waiting area was teeming with “agents,” men who make sure bribe money reaches the right government offices and the paperwork gets done. Some, desperate for work, want their business to become a legal profession. An agent named Jamil said he doesn’t view his deeds as crimes because ultimately, he is helping Afghans obtain documents faster. For a Toyota Corolla, he charges about $300, a hefty sum in Afghanistan, where the median income is only $800 a year. But this is the way things are done here. Ridding Afghanis
Corruption in Afghanistan isn’t limited to Afghans, U.S. official says By THOMAS L. DAY McClatchy Newspapers KABUL — About three-fourths of the ongoing corruption investigations led by U.S. oversight officials in Afghanistan are targeting suspects who aren’t Afghan nationals, the top U.S. investigator in Afghanistan said Tuesday in Kabul. While he wouldn’t identify officials or companies under investigation, the figures seem to support Afghan government contentions that corruption is every bit as widespread among Western officials as it is in their own ranks. “About 40 percent of our investigations involve procurement fraud,” said Raymond J. DiNunzio, the assistant inspector general for the U.S. special inspector general for Afghanistan reconstruction. U.S. and Western governments frequently issue large contracts to support military and reconstruction efforts in Afghanistan, for labor, security guards and building materials, for example. DiNunzio, a 23-year FBI veteran, promised that
The reconstruction effort has come under increased scrutiny as Defense Department contractors pour into Afghanistan to support the U.S. military surge. But the Office of the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction, headed by retired Marine Corps Gen. Arnold Fields, was only established by Congress in 2008, nearly seven years after the U.S. invasion to oust the Taliban. Just 10 of the criminal cases under the microscope involve Afghans only, while the rest involve U.S. and other foreigners, according to Raymond DiNunzio, the agency’s assistant inspector general for inspections. He would not elaborate since the cases are under investigation.
Related Questions
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- What was it like working alongside Will Vinton, Kathleen Quaife and other people in general on the project?
- Are the Afghanistan people linked to the rampant corruption in the reconstruction project?"
