An Iraqi TV news article quoted the head of Iraq's anti-corruption committee about the losses due to corruption last year.
Below is the text from the article - nothing new, just more of the same...
vj
from news syndicator RiaNovosti (Russian?)
Iraq loses $1bln through corruption in 2010
Iraqi economy lost about $1 billion in 2010 due to high level of corruption among state officials, the country's chief corruption fighter said Monday.
"Confirmed damages from corruption in 2010 totaled 1.135 trillion dinar [about $1 bln]," the chairman of Iraq's anti-corruption commission told Al Sharqiya television.
A total of 709 high-ranking state officials, including nine ministers and 75 department chiefs were convicted of corruption last year.
Corruption has become a major problem for Iraq, and the fight against it will be tough and lengthy, the official said.
"We do not have a magic wand that would help us to eliminate corruption in four or five years," he said.
In 2010, Iraq was listed by watchdog group Transparency International (TI) as the fourth most corrupt country in the world, after Afghanistan, Burma (Myanmar) and Somalia.
The survey was carried out in 178 countries. To form its Corruption Perception Index, TI compiles surveys that ask businessmen and analysts, both in and outside the countries they are analyzing.
BAGHDAD, January 4 (RIA Novosti)
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Here is a second version from "The Voice of Russia" - apparently both sources watched the same Iraqi TV show...
Corruption caused about $1 billion in harm to the Iraqi economy in 2010. This was announced on Monday by the television channel Al-Sharqiya citing the head of the Iraqi Commission on Combating Corruption Rahim Ala. During 2010, Ala said, criminal cases on corruption charges were filed against 874 high-ranking government officials. Corruption has become a major problem in Iraq, "said Ala, and getting control of the situation is not going to be either easy or quick, RIA Novosti reported. "We have no magic wand with which we may get rid of it in four or five years" said the head of the anti-corruption commission. "But if the fight against corruption weakens," said Ala, "saving the country from it will not be possible even in a 100 years."
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