Corruption In Iraq & World

This Blog's Author to Speak May 12 at Local Audit Chapter Seminar

I will be speaking about Iraq Corruption Issues on May 12 for a two hour continuing education seminar at the local chapter of the Institute of Internal Auditors (IIA) in Orlando.

Details and fees are at:
http://www.theiia.org/chapters/index.cfm?act=home.page&cid=90

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Below is the text describing the seminar:

Internal Audit Stories from Baghdad's Green Zone

On May 12 hear from Vance Jochim, the chief auditor in Baghdad, Iraq's "Green Zone" for 23 months. The event, which will be held in Downtown Orlando at the Disney Entrepreneur Center, will kick off at noon with lunch and the Chapter Annual General Meeting and the election of next year's volunteer board members, followed by Jochim's recounting of:

1. Life in the Green Zone and organization of the Embassy, Iraq Reconstruction Management Office, the US State Dept., USAID, the UK’s Department for International Development, BearingPoint, the US Army Corps of Engineers, non-governmental organizations, and other agencies.
2. An overview of non-military US women and men advisors in Iraq, their background and work functions.
3. Formation of the Iraq anti-corruption agency Commission of Public Integrity and how, as Chief Auditor, Jochim established the audit function to support anti-corruption investigation cases, including constraints and problems.
4. The $22-billion Iraq reconstruction program – how it was organized, the players, and how it got screwed up, resulting in many Special Inspector General Iraq Reconstruction audits and losses of billions.
5. Worldwide Anti-Corruption issues and resources, and what internal auditors in international companies need to know about corruption practices in different countries where suppliers or subsidiaries reside.
6. Comments about recent items in the news about Iraq – CPI, General Petreaus and Ambassador Ryan Crocker, Iraq revenue streams and oil revenue sharing, what Jochim think will happen in Iraq.

vj

July 1, 2006 Startup Day

This is the start of a blog about worldwide corruption, and specifically corruption issues affecting Iraq.  Briefly, during the period May, 2004 through March 30, 2006, I was a US advisor working in the US Embassy, Baghdad.  I was one of about 300 "IRMO" (Iraq Reconstruction Management Office) civilian staff and "subject matter experts" working out of the Presidential Palace in Baghdad.  Those that started before July, 2004 (like me) were hired through the Dept. of Defense, but then were required to move to the Dept. of State when Paul Bremer left Iraq and control of Iraq went to the Iraqi government, with US reconstruction efforts "managed" by IRMO within the State Dept.  My background of 20 years as a corporate and government internal audit manager was used to help establish anti-corruption programs within the Iraqi government, including the formation of the all Iraqi Commission of Public Integrity (CPI) which now has about 800+ employees.  CPI was modeled after the very successfull Hong Kong anti-corruption commission, and initially planned and led by US Army Reserve Lt. Col. Chuck Grinnell, an experienced "Mob" prosecutor from New Jersey.  High credit should be given to Chuck for proposing CPI to US Administrator Paul Bremer, and actually implementing it.  I was one of the first employees of CPI.  If it had not been for Chuck's initiative in 2003 when he proposed CPI, there probably would not be such an agency in Iraq.

Starting about January, 2005, work with CPI was slowing down, and I became very frustrated with the lack of progress in anti-corruption efforts.   Even though there was an internal coalition anti-corruption committee of various opinion and program leaders, it only acted as a "talking points" session, with no action.  As a consequence, I started up a daily anti-corruption newsletter distributed to about 50 people in Iraq.  The objective was to try and educate them in becoming more pro-active in anti-corruption efforts.  This work continued until I left Iraq in March, 2006.  In early 2006 I was able to get myself on a new, higher level Embassy anti-corruption committee until I finished my extended tours at the end of March, 2006.   I also spent significant time trying to improve the speed at which the Dept. of Defense filled procurement requests for reconstruction programs.  DoD was following US based regulations called "FARS" and it was taking a year or longer to get supplies for CPI investigators.

But, back to corruption.  This blog is to educate world leaders in anti-corruption theory and practices, and managers in worldwide corporations would learn what they could do to reduce corruption.

This blog will provide several types of information, and should be viewed as an insider's graduate level course on what it takes to reduce corruption - primarily in third world countries, but it might even help local goverments like those in my Orlando, FL area which seem unable to control periodic "eruptions of corruption".   Types of information will include:

- discussion of recent google news search articles on corruption in any country (or Iraq) and analysis of what would reduce the type of corruption reported in the article.

- discussion of worldwide sources and organizations that aim to reduce corruption.  There are some great worldwide, and some country specific anti-corruption commissions that reduce corruption.

- possible first person reports on corruption issues.  Now that I am not in the Federal government, I can pursue some interviews.

- old articles with commentary that I wrote from January, 2005 through March, 2006.

- articles will be categorized for easier retrieval. 

By the way, none of the information I will present is confidential or secret.  Most is in the public domain, or if I know specific details I will mask the information so it illustrates an issue, and not specific case.

Today is a great day to launch this blog from central Florida in the US - the same day that NASA is due to launch a space shuttle at Cape Canaveral, a NASCAR race will run at Daytona tonight, the old time train from historic Eustis will take a day trip to Orlando, Wimbleton tennis finals are on, World Cup soccer semi-finals are ongoing, and local communities are planning their annual July 4th festivities.

VJ