From: Biniam Haile \(SWE\) (eritrea.lave@comhem.se)
Date: Thu Feb 12 2009 - 15:30:25 EST
Thursday, February 12, 2009
Meles Zenawi and the Cover Up of Corruption
07/02/2009
The Prime Minister ordered government dignitaries to hand some of their
assets back to the State in order to fight against accusations that they
are enriching themselves.
The President of the Oromia Regional State, Abadula Gemeda(real name:
Menase Wolde Giorgis), has accepted to hand a villa back to the State in
response to an appeal by Prime Minister Meles Zenawi.
The former minister Junedin Sado yielded a plot of land he owned but did
not use.
Other officials in the EPRDF (governing coalition) and the TPLF (the
regime's hard core), however, have declined to follow the example,
stating that they had paid with blood for all they own today.
Executives in the ANDM such as Addisu Legese (the owner of the Papyrus
Hotel in Bahar Dar), Bereket Simon (road haulage) and Tefera Walwa
(refuse collection) preferred to remain silent on the matter.
Meanwhile, Abadula Gemeda has attributed land to President Girma
Woldegiorgis at Alem Gena, near Addis Ababa, where the expropriated
peasants are complaining that they have not been paid any compensation.
Source: The indian Ocean Newsletter
The book and the corruption
January 29th, 2009
Right after a book, just published by insider, exposes corruption
scandals, Aba Dula Gemeda (real name: Menase Wolde Giorgis), president
of the Oromia regional state has donated his villa to the Oromo People's
Democratic Organizaton (OPDO). OPDO is one of TPLF affiliates created by
Meles Zenawi mainly from the captives or POWs of the derg army during
the war aiming at controlling and subjugate the Oromo's.
According to a new book by an insider journalist and a writer close to
the ruling party, Tesfaye Gebreab, Aba Dula Gemeda was unable to
disclose his income source, to OPDO executives, of building a villa that
worth 700,000 ET. Birr. "The issue was brought to Meles Zenawi" The book
reads, "We can't touch Aba Dula as we don't have any loyal person [from
OPDO] to replace him. " Zenawi responded.
The puppet president of the Oromia Region, Aba Dula Gemeda, who faced
another challenge, had donated his villa to OPDO last week, according to
the weekly reporter, Amharic news paper. The news paper also commented
on Mr. Junedin Saddo, a senior OPDO member and minister of science and
technology who donated his embezzled plot of land in Adama to his party.
"Junedin didn't say anything about his 3 million Birr worth villa at
Letafo."
The paper said.OPDO is accumulating wealth embezzled from the poor by
its leaders.
Several sources are unfolding that the looting and suffering of citizens
has continues in the last two decades of Meles Zenawi rule.
Government's anti-corruption efforts are meant=2 0to destroy political
foes than the loyal corrupts like Aba dula Gemeda. To that end an
anti-corruption commission has been formed in Ethiopia since 2001. The
former prime minister, Tamerat Layne and defense minister, Seye Abraha
were victim of dubious corruption charges who served 12 and 6 years
respectively in prison.
According to Transparency International, Ethiopia is stil classified as
one of the most corrupt states in the world, as close circle of people
in power are looting the nation.
The anti-corruption commission itself has proved to be the most corrupt
organ of Meles Zenawi's regime. It is very difficult to abandon
corruption so long as Meles Zenawi himself is benefiting from it. A
recent report indicates that Meles Zenawi's wife, Azeb Mesfin has rented
her modern building to state owned telecommunication for 60 million
birr.
News obtained from Indian Ocean Newsletter exposes Meles Zenawi's top
men are accumulating wealth at the expense of the majority poor.
According to the ION, few people, including Azeb Mesfin, are owning and
running dozens of multi-billion campanies.
The recent phenomena signify embezzlements has become beyond Zenawi's
control. In his discussion with coffee exporters earlier this month,
Meles Zenawi said "10,0 00 tons of coffee bound for export has
disappeared recently". This bound of coffee worth about 20 to 23 million
dollars.
Professor Seid Hassan's analysis gainsays Zenawi's anti-corruption
effort. Professor Seid Hassan links the systemic and structural nature
of corruption with ethno-centric minority rule. One can not reasonably
expect to root out corruption by a one-party, one-man dictatorship
setting up a fake anti-corruption commission. It is simply meant to
paying lip-service to the cause of good governance to decieve donor
countries.
To end up corruptions and sufferings of our nation, people must join
hand and fight the root cause of these miseries which is the Meles
Zenawi regime. Two decades in power, Meles is the same. We repeat
ethiomedia's motto: "TPLF cannot be reformed; like apartheid, it should
be abolished."
Source: EMF
http://www.oromoliberationfront.org/News/2009/More%20revelations%20of%20
Corruption.html
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