Corrupt will not survive … the war continues – Saudi News

“No person involved in a corruption case, whoever he is, will be a minister or a prince,” a slogan launched by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, early May 2017, which reflected a clear vision designed and capable of fighting corruption and uprooting its roots from all different sectors, and striking with an iron hand for each Mischief with public money to restore rights and deter those whose leaders their ambitions, and their weak selves, to seize what they do not have unlawfully, the goal is to establish an impartial approach to fighting corruption and to reinforce the values ​​of integrity, honesty, objectivity, impartiality and transparency to protect public money from corruption and prevent graft.The Saudi approach to combating corruption revealed that “integrity” had dealt with more than 445 criminal cases in the past three months by arresting and investigating 408 citizens and residents. Those who were proven involved were referred to the competent court, while 1441 was an exceptional year for it, and Nazaha started about 600 cases related to Corruption, and the settlement cases for those accused of corruption culminated in the year 2019 of the recovery of 400 billion riyals, after 381 people were summoned, the release of those who were not proven guilty of corruption, and the settlement was made with 87 after they acknowledged what was attributed to them and accepted the settlement.

These treatments resulted in the arrest of a number of people and dozens of investigations in a number of ministries, according to “integrity” data, including the notary public, ports, banks, customs, the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Information, a joint-stock company, telecommunications, tourism, health, zakat and income, the Commission. The Royal Commission for Jubail and Yanbu, the Execution Court, the National Guard, the Royal Air Force, the Environment and Water, Traffic, the Military College, the Municipal Universities, Education, Housing, companies implementing projects in Riyadh, the Interior, the Electricity Company, the Public Prosecution and the private sector.

The rise of these and other sectors came not because they complained of corruption or the lack of administrative and financial control, but rather the actions and abuses of some individual employees who represent themselves exploiting loopholes and the absence of oversight to achieve personal interests.

She emphasized that Saudi Arabia is going resolutely and resolutely to fight corruption, eradicate the corrupt, and preserve the nation’s capabilities and gains, and that anyone is safe from legal prosecution. The law will strike anyone without regard to his identity or his workplace.

Not big on the law

The most prominent corruption cases involving a security sector commander with the rank of major general, 4 officers from his subordinates and the financial representative of the Ministry of Finance were revealed, because the brigade falsified one of the records for the supply of vehicles for a Hajj mission by signing in place of two members of the formed committee without their knowledge, which resulted in the amendment of an order The supply of 17 vehicles to 7 vehicles and a luxury Mercedes «Maybach» used by the first personally.

In another case, a former governor was arrested in one of the regions for obtaining a luxury vehicle from a businessman in exchange for facilitating his procedures at government departments in the governorate.

Legal: The system has ensured that the whistleblower is protected and not harmed

Lawyer and legal advisor Obaid bin Ahmed Al-Ayafi affirmed that the efforts undertaken by the Supervision and Anti-Corruption Authority reveal the weakness of the supervisory side in many government and private ministries and departments over their projects, contracts and the manner of disbursement, which requires them to pay attention to their supervisory side and beat the hands of the corrupt and bring them to justice.

Al-Ayafi indicated that it is no longer difficult or complicated for anyone to report a case of corruption, even if it is in his work, as the system guarantees the protection of the whistleblower and not to harm or dismiss him, and it is required that the information be correct and not malicious, and the report on suspicion of corruption can be submitted through several announced methods. From her to present his information and documents.

Al-Ayafi affirmed that the anti-bribery law stipulated severe penalties. The first article affirms: “Every public employee who asks for himself or for others, accepts or takes a promise or a gift to perform a work from his job, or claims that it is part of his job. A period not exceeding 10 years and a fine not exceeding one million riyals or either of these two penalties, and the occurrence of the crime does not affect the employee’s intention not to do the work he was promised.

The ninth article states that “whoever offers a bribe and is not accepted from him shall be punished with imprisonment for a period not exceeding 10 years and a fine not exceeding one million riyals or either of these two penalties.”

He adds: The briber, the mediator, and everyone who participates in one of the crimes mentioned in this system shall be punished by the penalty stipulated in the article that criminalizes it, and whoever agrees, instigates or assists in committing it with his knowledge of that, shall be deemed a partner in the crime, whenever the crime is carried out based on this agreement, incitement or assistance .

And he stressed that when corruption cases are linked to money laundering crimes, the penalty for it is imprisonment for a period not exceeding 10 years and a fine of not more than 5 million riyals, and that penalty can be increased if the perpetrator occupies a public office and the crime is linked to a public office, and the penalty of imprisonment for a period not exceeding 15 years is increased. And a fine not exceeding 7 million, and if it becomes clear that there is money from the crime, it is confiscated even if it is in the hands of others.

Pursuing corruption everywhere

The beating with an iron hand included imprisonment, fines and recovery of money that was unlawfully seized, and returning it to the state treasury, most notably the director of a port, a security sector commander and a former governor who were involved in cases of fraud and abuse of influence and breach of job duties, including a member of the Shura Council, a former judge, a notary and an employee A former bank, former district police director, former airport customs director, and a number of retired officers.

Nazaha revealed that it undertook 227 criminal cases, through the arrest and investigation of 374 citizens and residents, and work is underway to refer those who are proven to be involved in the competent court in charges of corruption, profiting from public office, and exploiting employment influence, and it included 5 employees in a municipality in one of the governorates of the Riyadh region. Their bank accounts, and they are an employee in the (fourteenth) rank who is currently working as an agent for municipal affairs in the municipality of one of the regions and a former director of the governorate’s municipality, an employee in the tenth rank works as a director of the procurement and contracts department in the municipality, an employee in the eighth rank works in the procurement department in the municipality, and an employee In the ninth rank, he works in the financial affairs department in the municipality, and an employee (contracted) works in the municipality.

Cash amounts were found in their possession totaling 45,960,900 riyals, 360,000 in various foreign currencies, 2,500,000 riyals (prepaid) cards for shopping at a food store, 149,225 riyals, fuel cards (prepaid), and 5 gold bars. , And 6 weapons (pistol).