KABUL (SW): Allegations of corruption and embezzlement against the speaker of the Wolesi Jirga (lower house) echoed in Saturday’s session with the members calling for independent investigations into it.
Earlier this week, reports surfaced in the media charging speaker Abdul Rauf Ibrahimi, deputy speaker and secretary of the WJ for misuse of public funds for personal gains. Rejecting the allegations, Ibrahimi said on Saturday the High Anti-Corruption Office has already probed this matter, hence there is no need to investigate it again. He, however, said if the members insist, they can probe it once again.
Humayoun Humayoun, deputy speaker, clarified that the rent of the speaker’s residence has been paid via the Wolesi Jirga budget, not from the Code 91. He charged the WJ secretariat for illegally inflating the prices of ten vases to up to AFN 600, 000. He insisted upon investigations into it.
The house voted on the matter, and a majority approved the house’s relevant committees to probe these matters.
In the meantime, Ramazan Bashardost, a member of the house, suggested the house should also adopt a resolution allowing legal organs to prosecute members of the parliament as well.
This comes as a number of incidents involving the parliamentarians in undermining the law have been reported of late. The culprits involved in incidents such as corruption, physical abuse aimed at policemen and traffic wardens and other criminal cases are often not pursuid due to the amnesty available to the MPs.
ENDS
