To err is human and loose cash tempting
it was, and perhaps still is, the habit of some government watchdogs in more than one arab country to turn a blind eye to monitoring the financial actions of those who have a religious nature or activities, on the grounds that those in charge of them are far from suspicion and doubt.
nevertheless, it has been proven, through several examples, that the matter may be the opposite, as we are all human that ‘loose’ money is tempting, especially where there is a lack or weakness of financial control. it was therefore not strange to see ministerial undersecretaries in the endowments, heads, and members of associations and religious organizations referred to the prosecution on charges of misappropriation of public funds.
often, the bodies that have an international or regional character are the most distant from oversight, and this makes them more vulnerable to corruption.
it was reported in the saudi ‘middle east’, some time ago, that the control and anticorruption authority in saudi arabia began investigating a number of criminal cases during the last period, the most prominent of which was the involvement of 3 employees of the muslim world league in obtaining more than 5.7 million riyals in payments from the director of a company contracting with the league in exchange for their agreement to increase the amount of 27 million riyals on the value of a project.
a manager in a major contracting company was also arrested for obtaining two million riyals in payments from a commercial entity, in exchange for enabling the entity to obtain subcontracts with the company within its existing projects in the grand mosque of makkah, and embezzling 50 million riyals from the same company with the participation of one of its accountants, and his share represents 25 million riyals and suspending 3 bank employees for establishing commercial entities, and opening bank accounts to be used in depositing cash, in return for 400 riyals out of every 100,000 riyals deposited in those accounts.
the anti-corruption authority also announced the suspension of a public notary for obtaining 2.6 million riyals from a businessman (suspended) in exchange for emptying 4 sukuk with a total area of more than 40,000 square meters in an irregular manner, and arresting 4 university employees, a citizen and a resident who had previously worked for it; for their involvement in establishing commercial entities, obtaining projects from the university in the amount of 10 million riyals, and signing incorrect work completion certificates.
the authority also started its procedures against a number of citizens and residents for transgression on mosques and benefiting from its electric current service, and referring them to the competent authority to take the necessary action against the perpetrators.
an employee of the general presidency of the commission for the promotion of virtue and the prevention of vice in one of the regions, a businessman, and a resident were also arrested, for receiving bribes, in return for signing incorrect certificates of completion of work.
we are not far from what is happening around us, especially since the oversight bodies in the ministry of awqaf, as it is rumored, have been reluctant for years to audit the accounts of charity institutions that have huge assets abroad and have multiple foreign projects about which little is known, and they also need oversight.
