Corrupt Officials’ Failed Efforts to Tackle Corruption

Introduction:

The dispute between lower house of parliament, Wolesi Jirga and the Kabul mayor Mr. Muhammad Yunus Nawandish has reached Attorney General’s Office (AGO), after initial investigations attorney general Mohammad Ishaq Aloko in a press conference revealed that the dispute between the mayor and MPs is motivated by private interests and said that they had personal illegal requests from the mayor.

What is the motive behind accusations on Kabul mayor? Whether the Wolesi Jirga members are pursuing national or private interest? To what extent are the accusations true? Why the criticism raises only when the interests of officials are threatened? CSRS’ Weekly Analysis Board has analyzed this issue as following:

Promises Made by Kabul Mayor versus his Achievements

First, let’s go back and take a look at the promises made by Kabul mayor in the first days of his duty and see to which extent he fulfilled them?

When Muhammad Yunus Nawandish was appointed as Mayor of Kabul by the President of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan in January, 2010, in his first meeting with media he promised that he would change the look of Kabul city. It was largely expected that the Kabul city look will be changed in coming two or three years. But five years after his appointment the situation of Kabul city deteriorates. Despite of huge amount of assistance and budget spent through Kabul municipality fundamental and efficient changes cannot be noticed. The limited numbers of roads and streets which are built or reconstructed are neither standard nor quality, as we see after heavy raining the general traffic roads are full of water.

Proper canalization and potable water systems does not exist which have created several problems for the citizens. Where did the 100 million US dollars provided by World Bank and the Japanese donor agency, JICA go? Their output cannot be seen in the city.

The widespread corruption that has hit Kabul administration exists on same scale in Kabul municipality as well. Kabul mayor is not exempted from the list of corrupt officials; he is also engaged in various types of corruptions. On the other hand this is also an illegitimate action that he knew about the corruption of the MPs but since they were not threatening his own position he was silent and now when they threatened his position he raised his voice against the corruption of MPs which tells that he is afraid of his corruption being leaked by MPs.

 

Motives behind the Dispute between MPs and Kabul Mayor

The mayor has failed in his work and there are claims about his corruption, but on the other hand the position of the MPs has also raised some questions, that whether the MPs are that much committed to struggle for the interests of the nation that they strike and other measures, or they have their own interests.

The impact of the parliament and the representation of the nation became known for almost every Afghan from the works of these houses. The interpellation of cabinet ministers showed that it was for personal interests and was misuse of power and authority by the lower house of parliament.

For instance, last year the Finance Minister, Hazrat Omar Zakhilwal in an interpellation announced the list of MPs who had made illegal requests from him. There are several cases of this kind between MPs and governmental authorities but they not publicized. Most of the corruptive actions of the MPs are known to the general public but there is not a preventive force.

This time too, they do not care about bad situation of Kabul city. The MPs who raised voice against Kabul mayor have personal dispute with the mayor over land-grabbing and various other corruption cases and have files in AGO.

Anticorruption Efforts by Corrupt Officials Paves Way for it

The Attorney General directly mentioned names of the Wolesi Jirgi speaker and head of the Communication and Transportation commission, who had illegal requests from the municipality.

Qais Hassan, head of Communication and Transportation commission of Wolesi Jirga, after being elected as MP, has officially bought 60 hectares of urban land from Kabul municipality with registered under his brother’s name and built Mirwais town on it. After officially receiving the 60 hectares he grabbed 140 hectares of government land illegally, for which he has a file in AGO and was placed on exit control list last year. He is now raising voice against Nawandish calling him corrupt while he himself is amongst the most corrupt MPs. MPs accusations of government officials corruption will not bear any fruit even if they are true because of their own involvement.

The judicial system is also corrupt as the other institutions and often makes compromise which make then incapable of fair trials. They have become an integral part of corruption. While the trials and pursuing of corruption cases have become blame games and create problems instead of solving them.

The truth is that none of the government agencies think about serving the nation rather they are engaged in corruption, land-grabbing mafias, embezzlement, smuggling and a wide range of other illegal activities while no government official or agency exists that might prevent them.

Anticorruption efforts by corrupt officials and representatives has led to corruption in the whole system and created trend of blame games for personal interests, which give high officials hope that if their illegal involvements are revealed they will have a way out of it.