Internal investigations reveal suspicions of corruption in deals for festivals and cultural events

Agadir24

Al Sabah newspaper reported that the Ministry of Interior’s oversight agencies have begun inspecting deals of a group of local groups, after receiving information indicating suspicions surrounding the circumstances of these deals.

Al Sabah sources reported that the deals under investigation include organising festivals and cultural events, and there are suspected links between the local officials involved in these deals and their beneficiaries.

The deals under scrutiny include security work for cultural festivals and events, as well as advertising and promotion via social media, and preparing the squares and places that host these activities.

The sources explained that most of these deals do not require the announcement of requests for proposals, which makes them vulnerable to violations and breaches.

She added that there are suspicions of favouritism and working relationships between officials and the beneficiaries of these deals, especially those that were passed during the last three years.

Sources indicate that the list of territorial groups subject to investigation is distributed among three parties, where members of the Ministry of Interior’s monitoring committees examine the documents of these deals.

The initial results revealed favoritism in passing some deals that were concluded directly with companies suspected of having relationships between group officials and the owners of these companies.

Al Sabah confirmed that the financial appropriations allocated for these deals had been greatly inflated, which raised the suspicions of financial auditors who refused to sign them.

This refusal prompted company owners to file complaints, especially after directives were issued stressing the need to settle all outstanding performance files owed by companies to public administrations within specific deadlines.

The financial controllers justified their rejection by the existence of suspicions of manipulation in the values ​​of these deals, which is considered a waste of public money.

A comprehensive investigation has been opened into the various transactions whose performance has not been indicated.

Initial investigations, after examining the documents of a number of deals, revealed that there was an exaggeration in the prices of services provided to the contracting groups, as these prices exceeded by three times the prevailing prices in the market.

Some of the work contracted by the companies was not completed at all, which prompted the financial controllers to refuse to sign the dues of these companies.

The total value of the transactions being investigated exceeds 11 million dirhams (more than one billion centimes).

Interior Ministry inspectors are investigating whether there are any connections between company owners and some local officials.

Al-Sabah sources confirmed that the financial controllers will identify the various irregularities and violations, and will refer a report on the supervisory mission to the relevant authorities to take appropriate measures against the violators.