Reopening Kabul Bank scandal case test for new gov't in fighting corruption

New Afghan President Ashraf Ghani Ahmadzai issued a decree directing the Supreme Court to reopen a case involving the scandal at the first Afghan private bank, Kabul Bank and resolve it within 45 days by recovering bank loans and stolen assets, as his first step in fighting corruption since assuming office on Sept. 29.

Once the largest financial body in the post-Taliban Afghanistan, the Kabul Bank plunged into deep crisis and was on the verge of collapsing in 2010, as it lost 913 million U.S. dollars in fraudulent activities and mismanagement, prompting the government to take charge over the bank by injecting hundreds of millions of U.S. dollars into it.

Only 184 million U.S. dollars out of 913 million U.S. dollars have been recovered,a spokesman for the Afghan Attorney General Office, Basir Azizi said recently.

Local observers are of the view that reopening the Kabul Bank scandal case could be a test for the new administration and in particular the national unity of the government in fighting corruption-- a menace that has tarnished the image of Afghanistan in the comity of nations.

"Administrative corruption is a challenge before the government and reopening the Kabul Bank scandal case is a test for the new government in fighting corruption," parliamentarian Shah Gul Rezai said in talks with local media.

The Berlin-based corruption watchdog Transparency International in its report released recently put Somalia as the most corrupt country in the world, followed by Afghanistan, Myanmar and Iraq.

The presidential decree on reopening the case of the Kabul Bank has been widely welcomed by Afghans from all walks of life and has raised the rays of hope among people for a corruption-free society.

Afghan observers believe that the reinvestigation of the Kabul Bank case and the recovery of the stolen money could help the government restore its image in delivering all the promises given to the people.

"Reopening the Kabul Bank case and reinvestigating the scandal is the mostdifficult test and a challenging task for the new government," lawmaker Rezai said, adding if the government succeeds in recovering the stolen assets, it would help the establishment to check corruption in all fields.

More than 4 million acres of land have reportedly been grabbed by powerful figures, including former warlords, who had power in the government during the era of former president Hamid Karzai.

Observers believe that recovering Kabul Bank's stolen funds would enable the government to reclaim all the stolen land and also check poppy cultivation.

Twenty one people, including the brother of former president Hamid Karzai and the brother of the former vice president, the late Mohammad Qasim Fahim, have been accused of committing fraud and embezzlement of the Kabul Bank.

The founder of the bank Shir Khan Farnood and its chief executive Khalilullah Ferozi have also been found guilty and sentenced to prison.

Local analysts are closely watching the development and assessing the government's resolve and might in resolving the case.

"Although fighting corruption is the primary need of the government, the menace of corruption is deep-rooted within the government and so it is very difficult for the president to overcome the nuisance," political analyst and lawmaker Ghulam Hussain Nasiri maintained in talks with a local media.

"(By about) 43 percent I believe in the government's ability to bring to justice those responsible for the Kabul Bank scandal because some of the big fish are above the law, " he said with pessimism.

Corroborating the notion, another lawmaker and political analyst, Dr.Ramadan Bashardost, was skeptical and said, "I don't believe in the president's ability to recover the stolen funds of Kabul Bank."