Journalists syndicate demands release of Basra corruption files

Shafaq News- Basra

The head of the Iraqi Journalists Syndicate's Basra branch, Sadiq al-Ali, called Wednesday for all corruption files relating to the southern province to be made public, demanding lawmaker Abdul Amir al-Mayahi either produce evidence for his statements on corruption in provincial projects or accept legal and political responsibility for them.

At issue are statements al-Mayahi, a member of the Iraqi parliament's Integrity Committee, attributed to the head of the Federal Board of Supreme Audit, the country's state financial oversight body, relaying that presenting the audit files on Basra province's projects to the public would, in the official's words, set the province alight. Al-Mayahi also objected to the Board withholding its audit and inspection reports on Basra projects from legislative and oversight bodies.

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Al-Ali said that if the account of the Board chief's remarks is accurate, “it raises questions about why the facts are being kept from citizens, and that if it is not accurate, al-Mayahi must substantiate what he put forward or bear responsibility for it.”

Basra has paid the price of corruption over many years through stalled projects, plundered resources, and the impoverishment of its residents despite ranking as Iraq's wealthiest province, al-Ali said. Concealing corruption files does not protect stability, he added, but entrenches corruption and erodes public trust in institutions.

“Everyone implicated in corruption cases should be referred to the judiciary regardless of position or influence,” he urged, calling for an end to the protection of corrupt officials and a move to accountability and public disclosure as the route to recovering the rights of Basra and its people.

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