Iraq corruption

We all know about the massive corruption in the UN Oil for Food program that lined the pockets of the people involved. If you haven't here it is in The Independent, The Observer, and the Telegraph along with an opinion piece calling for the dismantling of the entire overblown talking shop.

This took place over the course of ten years from a $64 billion project. What you may not know is that the corruption has continued under new management. According to the BBC's File on Four programme of the $20 billion of oil sold to pay for Iraq's reconstruction $8.8 billion is unaccounted for. Yes you read that correctly 44% of the funds have gone astray. This may not be on the Oil for Food scale, yet, but it has only been going a couple of years.

"One US company is accused of massively inflating its profits by setting up sham companies to send fake invoices which the coalition paid."

I was against the war as it was not in the national interest to stir up more hatred in the middle east and act as recruiting sargent for the Islamofasists. I also believed that it would be primarily a war for oil. This could be seen by the areas that where protected from looting after the fall of Sadam when it became clear that there where not enough troops to secure everything.

Not oil for the average SUV loving American, access to the Iraqi oil fields could have been gained much cheaper by lobbying the UN to get rid of sanctions. No this was about getting money to the multinationals that had financed George Bush's election campaigne. Had they go santions removed then while oil prices may have gone down for consumers as supplies increased the companies that would have benefitted would have been French as they had the exploration rights (you now see the reason for Frances anti-war stance other than simple anti-americanism). Now of cause it is mainly American multinationals that have the exploration rights, as well as the multi-billion bananza of the reconstruction, and billions more from the privatisation the Iraqi utilities.