Leaked UN report demands sanctions for Somalia's corrupt leaders
<
http://mg.co.za/author/sapa-afp> 18 Jul 2012 08:30 - Sapa-AFP
Corrupt leaders in war-ravaged Somalia should face immediate security
council sanctions, a report by the United Nations says.
The leaked report said key leaders at the very top of government - including
the president and the speaker of Parliament - were mired in scandal,
boosting the cause of al-Qaeda-linked al-Shabab insurgents.
It called for the UN Security Council to impose sanctions "with the least
possible delay".
Somalia's West-funded Transitional Federal Government (TFG) ends its mandate
next month, with several members hoping to remain in power afterwards. Many
are accused in the report of "pervasive corruption".
President Sharif Sheikh Ahmed and Parliament speaker Sharif Hassan are among
leaders named in allegedly corrupt deals, the report by the UN Monitoring
Group on Somalia and Eritrea said.
"Out of every $10 received by the TFG in 2009/10, $7 never made it into
state coffers," said the report, a copy of which was seen by Agence
France-Presse.
In 2011, almost a quarter of total government expenditure - over $12-million
- was "absorbed" by the offices of the president, prime minister and
speaker, it said.
This equalled half the TFG's domestic income and "almost as much as the
government spends on security in a time of conflict", it added.
'Obstacles'
A May 2012 World Bank report found $131-million unaccounted for in TFG
revenues in 2009/10, or 68% of total recorded revenues, but the UN report
suggested a further $40-million in 2011 could be missing.
"Many TFG officials make no distinction between public and private finances,
and treat financial rules and institutions as obstacles to be circumvented
or disregarded," it said.
While the al-Shabab have suffered a string of territorial losses in recent
months, helping the government consolidate its fragile hold over the
conflict-torn country, rampant corruption endangers what little gains have
been made, the report said.
"The systematic misappropriation, embezzlement and outright theft of public
resources have essentially become a system of governance," it said, warning
corruption was "the most serious impediment to building effective governing
institutions".
A failure to address the issue threatens "the restoration of peace, security
and stability", and "would fuel continued instability and conflict,
potentially reviving the fortunes of an embattled al-Shabab", it said.
The report "therefore recommends that the security council ... consider
imposing targeted measures, and possibly other forms of political censure,
against the senior Somali political leaders who bear responsibility".
'Serious threat'
It also warns that the al-Shabab remains a "serious threat to peace,
security and stability, not only in Somalia but also on the broader
international scene", despite losses and leadership rifts.
The al-Shabab is "actively strengthening its ties with other foreign
extremist groups" including Kenya's Muslim Youth Centre (MYC) and Tanzania's
Ansaar Muslim Youth Centre (AMYC).
It warns that Kenya's MYC "seeks to use its sanctuaries in Somalia as
springboards for terrorist acts in Kenya, deploying several operational
cells to Kenya in recent months for this purpose."
Kenya has seen a spate of attacks in recent months.
Al-Qaeda's endorsement of the al-Shabab may also boost relationships with
groups including Yemen's al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula and Boko Haram in
Nigeria, "both of which have engaged with al-Shabab in the recent past".
The report details a catalogue of examples of corruption in Somalia. In one,
officials ordered a mass printing of banknotes worth $130-$150-million, in a
deal negotiated by the speaker.
Described as "little better than counterfeiting" the report said the deal
was to "generate a political slush fund, enable large scale corruption and
finance the ambitions of certain TFG leaders to interfere with the political
process".
Calling for more aid
Much of the funding from foreign aid "never reaches the Central Bank or the
treasury", it adds.
President Sharif told UN investigators the cash was "perhaps in the pockets"
of others, before "calling for more aid" because the government was
struggling to pay workers their wages.
Sharif was also fingered in the failure of Somalia's new passport authority
- also allegedly missing $1.5-million in revenue - where fraud and
corruption are rampant, posing "potential threats to regional and
international security".
At least one senior al-Shabab leader has been issued a passport, while one
of Somalia's "most notorious pirate leaders received a diplomatic passport",
the report added.
The president told the group that pirate kingpin Mohamed Abdi Hassan
"Afweyne" was given the passport as an inducement to end his criminal
network.
The report also points to worrying "large scale misappropriation or
diversion of lifesaving assistance" in Somalia, which is still reeling from
extreme drought and famine conditions last year
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Received on Thu Jul 19 2012 - 19:03:37 EDT
