Al-Rasheed Bank dismisses role in Iraq’s fake employee payroll case

Shafaq News- Baghdad

Al-Rasheed Bank denied on Monday any involvement in the case of so-called “ghost employees” at Iraq’s Ministry of Electricity, clarifying that its role is limited to disbursing salaries based on official payroll lists submitted by the ministry.

In a statement, the bank described claims linking it to the payment of salaries to fictitious employees at the ministry as inaccurate. “Salary domiciliation procedures are carried out according to approved regulations and based on official lists submitted by the relevant authorities.”

On Sunday, the Ministry of Electricity stated that it had identified 549 fictitious employees whose names had allegedly been added to payrolls and whose salaries had been domiciled through collusion with external entities and institutions, including Al-Rasheed Bank and the General Directorate of Vocational Education.

The bank explained that the Ministry of Electricity sends monthly payroll lists through officially signed correspondence from authorized officials. The bank’s role, it added, is limited to processing salary payments according to the lists and data provided by the ministry.

Verifying employees’ attendance, physical presence at work, commencement of duties, and compliance with official working hours falls under the responsibility of the ministry and its affiliated departments, not the bank, the statement said.