Tag Archives: graft

World

Vietnam president quits as Communist Party intensifies graft crackdown

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  • President highest-profile casualty of graft crackdown
  • Phuc blamed for conduct of officials under him
  • Hundreds of officials hit by ‘blazing furnace’ campaign
  • Phuc’s downfall widely expected

HANOI, Jan 17 (Reuters) – Vietnam President Nguyen Xuan Phuc has resigned after the ruling Communist Party blamed him for “violations and wrongdoing” by officials under his control, the government said on Tuesday, in a major escalation of the country’s anti-graft campaign.

Phuc, a former prime minister widely credited with accelerating pro-business reforms, held the largely ceremonial post of president since 2021 and is the highest-ranking official targeted by the party’s sweeping corruption crackdown.

Vietnam has no paramount ruler and is officially led by four “pillars”: the party’s secretary, the president, prime minister and speaker of the house.

Phuc, 68, was ultimately responsible for offences committed by many officials, including two deputy prime ministers and three ministers, the government said.

“Fully being aware of his responsibilities before the party and people, he submitted an application to resign from his assigned positions, quit his job and retire,” it said in statement.

Phuc’s office could not immediately be reached for comment and it was not clear if a replacement has been chosen.

Vietnam has been rife with speculation he would be removed following January’s dismissal of two deputy prime ministers who served under him, as the party doubles down on a “blazing furnace” anti-corruption drive led by its powerful long-serving chief, Nguyen Phu Trong.

Last year, 539 party members were prosecuted or “disciplined” for corruption and “deliberate wrongdoings”, including ministers, top officials and diplomats, according to the party, while police investigated 453 corruption cases, up 50% from 2021.

Trong earlier this month said the party was “more determined” and “more effective and methodical” in its approach, and vowed to deliver results.

IMPACT UNCERTAIN

Opinions vary on the impact of the anti-graft drive on investment and policy.

Le Hong Hiep of the Vietnam Studies Programme at the Singapore’s ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute said the purge could pave the way for cleaner more capable leaders to rise.

“As long as the leadership reshuffles do not lead to radical policy changes, their impact on the economy will also be limited,” Hiep posted on his Facebook account.

However, Ha Hoang Hop, a senior visiting fellow at the same institute, said Phuc’s demise and uncertainty over the impact of the crackdown could unnerve investors.

“This could lead Vietnam to a time of instability that would worry foreign friends and investors,” he said.

Phuc’s resignation requires approval from the legislature, which sources on Monday said would hold a rare extraordinary meeting this week, adding to expectation that Phuc’s fate had been sealed.

Phuc, who was known in Vietnam for his friendly approach and love for the national soccer team, was once tipped as a future party General Secretary, the state’s most prestigious job.

As prime minister from 2016 to 2021, he oversaw an average 6% annual economic growth for Asia’s burgeoning manufacturing powerhouse and helped further a liberalisation drive that included trade deals with the European Union and Pacific powers.

Despite his downfall, the government on Tuesday praised his achievements, particularly his pandemic response.

“He has made great efforts in leading, directing and administering the COVID-19 epidemic prevention and control, achieving important results,” it said.

Editing by Kanupriya Kapoor and Martin Petty

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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World

European Parliament kicks out VP Kaili over Qatar graft scandal

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  • Kaili was one of four people arrested in Belgium
  • Greek politician’s lawyer says she denies wrongdoing
  • Police uncovered cash in raids, some in suitcase in hotel
  • European Parliament’s role as bloc’s moral compass at risk

STRASBOURG, Dec 13 (Reuters) – The European Parliament removed Greek MEP Eva Kaili as a vice president of the assembly on Tuesday after she was accused of accepting bribes from Qatar in one of the biggest graft scandals to hit Brussels.

Kaili has denied any wrongdoing, but European lawmakers have moved rapidly to isolate her, worrying that the Belgian investigation will badly dent the assembly’s efforts to present itself as a sound moral compass in a troubled world.

“There will be no sweeping under the carpet. Our internal investigation will look at what has happened and how our systems can be made more watertight,” European Parliament President Roberta Metsola said as 625 MEPs voted to deprive Kaili of her VP role, with only one voting against and two abstaining.

Kaili, who is in police detention, was one of 14 vice presidents in the parliament.

Belgian prosecutors charged her and three Italians at the weekend of taking part in a criminal organisation, money laundering and corruption.

A source close to the investigation has said they are believed to have pocketed money from World Cup host Qatar. The Gulf state has denied any wrong doing.

Police have raided numerous buildings in Brussels, including parliament offices and 19 homes, discovering around 1.5 million euros ($1.58 million), some of it stashed in a suitcase in a hotel room, a source close to the investigation said.

Kaili’s lawyer in Greece, Michalis Dimitrakopoulos, said on Tuesday that she was innocent. “She has nothing to do with financing from Qatar, nothing, explicitly and unequivocally,” he told Open TV in a first public comment.

Several MEPs nonetheless called for the 44-year-old Socialist politician to quit the assembly altogether.

“Given the extent of the corruption scandal, it is the least we could expect of her,” said MEP Manon Aubry, who co-chairs the Left group.

Ali bin Samikh Al Marri, Qatar’s minister of labour, speaks with Greece’s Eva Kaili, vice president of the European Parliament, during a meeting in Qatar, October 31, 2022 in this social media handout image. Twitter/Ministry of Labour – State of Qatar via REUTERS

CORRUPTION

Countries which have faced criticism from the assembly said it had lost the moral high ground.

“From now on the European Parliament will not be able to speak about corruption in a credible manner,” Hungary Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto wrote on Facebook.

Belgian prosecutors said they had suspected for more than four months that a Gulf state was trying to buy influence in Brussels. Although no state was publicly named by prosecutors, a source with knowledge of the case said it was Qatar.

None of the four people charged have been formally identified, but their names were rapidly leaked to the press.

According to a source familiar with the case, the other accused are former EU lawmaker Pier Antonio Panzeri, Kaili’s partner Francesco Giorgi, who is a parliamentary assistant, and Niccolo Figa-Talamanca, secretary-general of a human rights campaign group.

There were no replies to calls and emails made by Reuters to their respective offices or homes.

Kaili was among a stable of young aspiring Greek politicians who emerged in the debilitating debt crisis which swept Greece from 2010 to 2015. The Greek socialist PASOK party has said it will expel her from its ranks.

In a speech in the European Parliament on Nov. 21, at the start of the month-long World Cup, she lashed out at Qatar’s detractors and hailed the energy-rich Gulf state as “a frontrunner in labour rights.”

Qatar has faced fierce criticism of its human rights record in the run up to the World Cup, including its treatment of migrant workers.

Additional reporting by Phil Blenkinsop, Karolina Tagaris, Clement Rossignol, Max Schwarz, Lefteris Papadimas, Michele Kambas, Alan Charlish, Giselda Vagnoni; Writing by Ingrid Melander; Editing by Edmund Blair and Crispian Balmer

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World

Qatar graft probe damages European Parliament, EU ministers say

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  • Corruption scandal targets European Parliament
  • Four arrested and charged after homes raided
  • Qatar denies allegations it bribed top officials

BRUSSELS, Dec 12 (Reuters) – The European Union’s credibility is at stake, EU foreign ministers warned on Monday, following allegations Qatar lavished cash and gifts on European Parliament officials to influence decision-making.

Greece on Monday froze the assets of a key suspect in the case, Eva Kaili, a vice president in the European Parliament and one of four people arrested and charged in Belgium at the weekend, a source with knowledge of the matter said.

Kaili’s office did not respond to a request for a comment. Qatar has denied any wrongdoing.

Belgian prosecutors searched 16 houses and seized 600,000 euros ($631,800) in Brussels on Friday as part of the probe.

The four unnamed suspects have been charged with “participation in a criminal organisation, money laundering and corruption,” prosecutors said in a statement on Sunday.

The European Parliament said at the weekend it had suspended Kaili from her duties, while the Greek socialist PASOK party announced it was expelling her from its ranks.

According to sources familiar with the case, the three other accused are all Italian citizens — former EU lawmaker Pier Antonio Panzeri, general secretary of the International Trade Union Confederation Luca Visentini, and Kaili’s partner Francesco Giorgi, who is a parliamentary assistant.

There were no replies to calls and emails made by Reuters to their respective offices or homes in Belgium.

“This is an unbelievable incident which has to be cleared up completely with the full force of law,” German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said as she arrived for a regular meeting with her EU counterparts in Brussels.

“This is about the credibility of Europe.”

Irish Foreign Affairs Minister Simon Coveney echoed her concern. “It is damaging. We need to get to the bottom of it.”

Belgian prosecutors said they had suspected for months that a Gulf state was trying to buy influence in Brussels.

A source with knowledge of the case said the state was Qatar. A Qatari official denied at the weekend accusations of possible misconduct.

“Any association of the Qatari government with the reported claims is baseless and gravely misinformed,” the official said.

BACKING QATAR

The investigation comes as World Cup host Qatar is in the global spotlight, amid criticism of its human rights record, including its treatment of migrant workers.

In a speech in the European Parliament on Nov. 21, at the start of the month-long soccer tournament, Kaili lashed out at Qatar’s detractors and hailed the energy-rich Gulf State as “a frontrunner in labour rights”.

“They committed to a vision by choice and they opened to the world. Still some here are calling to discriminate them. They bully them and they accuse everyone that talks to them or engages (with them) of corruption,” Kaili said.

The scandal is particularly awkward for the parliament, which has seen itself as a moral compass in Brussels, seeking tighter rules on the environment or on corporations, issuing resolutions critical of human rights abuses across the globe and taking EU governments to task.

As they arrived at Monday’s EU meeting, ministers were quick to condemn the alleged corruption.

“It is absolutely unacceptable, any kind of corruption,” said Czech Foreign Minister Jan Lipavsky.

“Qatar is an important partner for the energy of the EU,” he noted, while adding: “Of course the relation between the EU and Qatar needs to be built on a set of policies including human rights and labor rights.”

Some European diplomats told Reuters last month that pressure to maintain good ties with Qatar was increasing as the continent headed towards a winter of energy shortages because of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

The European Parliament was due to vote this week on a proposal to extend visa-free travel to the EU for Kuwait, Qatar, Oman and Ecuador. Some lawmakers have suggested the vote should be postponed. Others have called for a debate on the corruption scandal.

The parliament was scheduled to start it plenary session in Strasbourg at 5 p.m. (1600 GMT), with many members making the trip from Brussels in the morning.

Reporting by Phil Blenkinsop in Brussels and Lefteris Papadimas in Athens; Additional reporting by Sudip Kar-Gupta, Bart Meijer, Charlotte Van Campenhout and Angeliki Koutantou; Writing by Ingrid Melander; Editing by Crispian Balmer

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US

John Sandor and Mary Graft, parents of Navy sailor Xavier Hunter Mitchell Sandor who died by suicide on USS George Washington, blast Navy’s ‘ridiculous’ response

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John Sandor and Mary Graft, the parents of Master at Arms Seaman Recruit Xavier Hunter Mitchell Sandor, told CNN’s Brianna Keilar on “New Day” that their son did not provide much detail about the conditions on the carrier but said the experience was “awful.”

“People shouldn’t have to live like this,” John Sandor said his son told him, adding that Xavier would call them from his car and that there was a lack of hot water with which to take a shower.

Since Monday, more than 200 sailors have been moved from the carrier to a nearby Navy facility after multiple deaths by suicide among the crew, including three in less than one week in April, the Navy said. The deaths have occurred amid an overhaul process and years-long refueling of the carrier at a shipyard in Newport News in Virginia. The Navy has opened an investigation into the command climate and culture on board the Nimitz-class carrier.

“He loved his job. He did his 12-hour shifts. And how do you sleep on an aircraft carrier with jackhammering and smoke and smells during the day? So, he would sleep in his car,” John Sandor said about his son, who was 19. “It is just awful. No sailor should even have been living on that ship in those conditions.”

John Sandor later said, “Knowing what was going on with the crew before him, this could have happened a long time ago and my son would still be alive. I don’t know why it took so long for the Navy to act on it. They had to wait until the seventh to actually make changes? It’s ridiculous.”

CNN reached out to the Navy for comment on Wednesday.

Capt. Brent Gaut, commanding officer of the carrier, made the decision to allow sailors living on board the ship to move to other accommodations, according to a statement from Naval Air Force Atlantic. Although the carrier does not have its full complement of approximately 5,000 sailors, the ship still has about 2,700 sailors working aboard during the overhaul process. About 420 sailors live on board the ship during its overhaul.

The ship’s command is working to identify sailors who could “benefit from and desire the support services and Morale, Welfare, and Recreation (MWR) programs” that are available on local Navy facilities. The Navy is in the process of setting up “temporary accommodations” for these sailors, according to an earlier statement from Naval Air Force Atlantic.

Results from the Navy’s investigation into the deaths are expected this week, Adm. John Meier, commander of US Naval Air Force Atlantic, told reporters on Tuesday.

“We’ve assigned an investigating officer to look into that and to really to look into the proximate cause. Was there an immediate trigger? Was there a linkage between those events? I expect that to report out this week, and I won’t presuppose the outcome of that report,” Meier said.

The investigation is one of two the US Navy is conducting. The second investigation, Meier also said, has a “much broader scope” and focuses on “command climate, command culture.”

In response to the three suicides in April, the Navy added resources to the ship, including a “ship psychologist,” “resiliency counselors,” and “a 13-person sprint team, which is a special intervention team for instances like this,” Meier said.

Editor’s Note: If you or a loved one have contemplated suicide, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255 or text TALK to 741741.

CNN’s Oren Liebermann contributed to this report.

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World

Ex-Indonesian minister jailed for 12 years in COVID-19 graft scandal

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Indonesia’s Social Affairs Minister Juliari Batubara walks as he arrives at Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) headquarters in Jakarta, Indonesia, December 6, 2020 in this photo taken by Antara Foto. Antara Foto/Hafidz Mubarak/ via REUTERS

JAKARTA, Aug 23 (Reuters) – Former Indonesian social affairs minister Juliari Batubara has been sentenced to 12 years in prison over a multi-million dollar COVID-19 graft scandal, the Jakarta Corruption Court ruled on Monday.

A judge said the former politician was found “convincingly guilty of corruption” after receiving 32.4 billion rupiah ($2.25 million) in kickbacks in relation to the procurement of goods intended for COVID-19 social assistance packages.

The politician, who the court found had intervened in the tender process, was also fined 500 million rupiah, and ordered to pay back 14.5 billion rupiah in embezzled funds used for personal expenses.

In the streamed ruling, the judges said Juliari would also be banned from public office for four years after serving his prison term.

Juliari had denied wrong doing. His lawyer Maqdir Ismail on Monday described the sentence, which was one year longer than investigators had demanded, as too harsh and said they were considering whether to appeal.

Indonesia’s anti-graft commission (KPK) named Juliari as a suspect in the case last December along with four others.

At the time, anti-corruption investigators discovered more than $1 million in cash stuffed into suitcases and other containers, a day before the former minister turned himself in.

President Joko Widodo was elected in 2014 on a pledge to fight graft and some prominent politicians have been jailed for corruption during his administration, but there are concerns the anti-graft agency’s clout has weakened.

According to the global watchdog Transparency International (TI), worsening graft saw Indonesia drop three points on its corruption perception index last year to rank 102 out of 180 countries.

($1 = 14,410.0000 rupiah)

Writing by Kate Lamb; Editing by James Pearson and Ed Davies

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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World

Brazil to suspend Indian COVID-19 vaccine deal as graft claims probed

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RIO DE JANEIRO, June 29 (Reuters) – Brazil will suspend a $324-million contract for COVID-19 vaccine from India that has mired President Jair Bolsonaro in accusations of irregularities, the health minister said on Tuesday, following guidance by the federal comptroller, the CGU.

The deal to buy 20 million doses of Bharat Biotech’s Covaxin shot has become a headache for Bolsonaro after whistleblowers went public with alleged irregularities. One health ministry official said he alerted the president about his concerns.

Bolsonaro, whose popularity has faded as Brazil’s COVID-19 death toll climbed past 500,000, has denied any wrongdoing, saying on Monday he was not aware of any irregularities.

But thorny questions persist, and may pose problems for him ahead of next year’s presidential vote.

Health Minister Marcelo Queiroga told a news conference his team would investigate the accusations during the suspension.

“According to the preliminary analysis of the CGU, there are no irregularities in the contract but, for compliance, the health ministry chose to suspend the contract,” the ministry said in a statement.

CNN Brasil had earlier reported that the ministry had decided to cancel the contract.

Brazilian federal prosecutors have opened an investigation, citing comparatively high prices of about $15 a dose, quick talks and pending regulatory approvals as red flags.

In a statement, Bharat Biotech said it had followed a “step-by-step” approach for the regulatory approval and supply contract of its vaccine in Brazil, and had not received advance payments from the health ministry.

It added that the pricing of Covaxin had been set between $15 and $20 a dose for supplies to governments outside India.

The deal is also being probed by a Senate panel investigating Brazil’s handling of the pandemic.

One leading opposition senator on the panel, Randolfe Rodrigues, filed a formal criminal complaint against Bolsonaro with the Supreme Court on Monday.

He asked the court to investigate why Bolsonaro “did not take any action after being notified of the existence of a giant corruption scheme in the Health Ministry.”

($1=4.9403 reais)

Reporting by Gabriel Stargardter and Pedro Fonseca; Additional reporting by Uday Sampath in Bengaluru; Editing by Bill Berkrot and Clarence Fernandez

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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