The Great Afghan Corruption Crackdown?

by Una M. · 2009-11-17 01:47:00 UTC
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In recent months, the Afghan government has faced steadily intensifying pressure from its own public and from NATO governments to take meaningful action to curb official corruption. With the announcement on Monday of a new anti-corruption unit under the Interior Ministry, it may finally be about to do just that.

According to Afghan Attorney General Eshaq Aleko, a major investigation is already underway into corruption at the highest levels of the Afghan government. The individuals under investigation reportedly may include some members of president Hamid Karzai's cabinet.

"Big mistakes have been made in signing contracts, procurements, and providing logistics and other supplies for the government," Aleko told Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. "According to the law, I can not name them, because they are still considered to be suspects and we've not received the ruling of the court yet."

Ershad Ahmadi, the deputy head of the newly established High Office of Oversight & Anti-Corruption in Afghanistan, said his agency is ready to get tough on corrupt officials.

Ahmadi's recommended zero-tolerance policies, if put in place, would be nothing short of revolutionary in a country where impunity has long been the rule.

"The Afghan Government must commit itself to ensuring that public office is not held by individuals perceived by the public to be corrupt," said Ahmadi. "Specifically, it must identify the top 100 most corrupt individuals and dismiss them."

At the same time, Ahmadi wants the corruption crackdown to target corrupt contracting practices by foreign organizations and militaries as well. "The international community must address genuine concerns about faulty and corrupt contracting practices," he said. "A good start would be a review of contracts awarded for work at Bagram airbase and with provincial reconstruction teams. Afghans want to know who is benefiting from these contracts — and how."

Corruption has been allowed to bloom unchecked for the past eight years, and is now ranked second only to insecurity as the most serious complaint Afghans have with their government, according to a recent survey by the Asia Foundation. Here's hoping Aleko and Ahmadi are sincere about fighting it --and if they are, that both men have top notch security details.

[Photo:http://www.flickr.com/photos/kennymiller/ / CC BY-SA 2.0]

Una M.
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