http://www.worldbulletin.net/todays-news/140847/somali-leader-denies-un-corruption-accusations
Somali leader denies U.N. corruption accusations
July 18, 2014
A U.N. report accused the president, along with others, of conspiring to
divert recovered Somali assets.
*World Bulletin / News Desk*
Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud has distanced himself from a U.N.
report accusing him of involvement in a conspiracy to divert millions of
dollars in stolen and frozen Somali assets overseas.
"We have demonstrated our commitment to progressive public financial
management in many ways, including appointing the Financial Governance
Committee (FGC)," President Mohamud said in a statement, a copy of which
was emailed to Anadolu Agency late Wednesday.
"The FGC released its first progress report in May highlighting significant
public financial management achievements," he added.
A report by the Somalia and Eritrea Monitoring Group, a U.N. group mandated
to check on Somalia's compliance with existing U.N. sanctions, has accused
Mohamud, former foreign minister Fawzia Adam and American law firm Shculman
Rogers of conspiring to divert recovered Somali assets.
The 37-page report suggested that President Mohamud had misused his office
and power for personal gains.
Somalia slid into civil war in 1991 with the ouster of the long-standing
military regime of Siad Barre.
The country's funds and assets abroad were frozen, or stolen.
Hundreds of millions of dollars believed to have been stashed by former
government officials went unaccounted for.
President Mohamud said he remained committed to recover all Somali assets
abroad.
"The federal government continues to seek the most effective means to
recover significant stolen and frozen Somali assets," he said in the
statement.
"At present due to the capacity limitations of Somali institutions and lack
of data records, the federal government cannot easily identify either the
amount or the locations of Somali assets," added the president.
"Recovering these assets is extremely complex and requires specialist
support," he said.
Mustapha Hassan, a Nairobi-based regional expert, said the Somali leader's
track record has been commendable so far.
"If the report is correct Mohamud's name will have been tarnished overnight
and this is likely to affect the country's relation with the international
community," Hassan told AA.
Somali's economy largely depends on the aid from the international
community and donor countries.
Received on Sun Jul 20 2014 - 10:54:27 EDT