(February 20, 2004) Canada’s auditor general dropped a bombshell on the country’s ruling Liberal government last week in a report roundly condemning it for the misuse of at least CDN$100 million in public funds.
Firms urged to join rush for Iraqi ‘gold’
(February 19, 2004) Accountancy firms are being encouraged to set up shop in Iraq to take part in what was last week billed as a modern-day ‘gold rush’.
Sponsorship scandal is like cancer on Liberal party: Mills
(February 18, 2004) Liberal MP Dennis Mills says the sponsorship scandal is like a cancer eating away at the party – and the public trust.
Editorial: Welcome moves for whistle-blowers
(February 18, 2004) Astonishingly, Canada has no such "whistle-blower" law to shield people from reprisals, unlike the United States, Great Britain and Australia. The government is planning to introduce a draft bill by late March.
JS passes anti-corruption commission bill: TIB terms bill ‘cynical deception’
(February 18, 2004) Amid abstention of major opposition parties, the Jatiya Sangsad [the Bangladesh parliament] Tuesday night passed a bill for formation of an anti-corruption commission.
House to debate ‘culture of corruption’
(February 17, 2004) Describing the Liberals as "corrupt" has caused several days of hand-wringing and backroom debate among senators in the Upper Chamber, but the term will be front and centre for a full day of debate today in the House of Commons.
Canadian finance scandal taints upcoming election
(February 17, 2004) Canadian officials at international summits are fond of lecturing their counterparts from poorer countries on the debilitating effects of corruption. Now opposition politicians say Canada has produced a corruption scandal to call its own.
A link between reparations, forgiving African debt
(February 16, 2004) What do The Washington Times and the AfricaFocus Bulletin have in common? In editorial policy, they are miles apart. Yet, both published articles during this Black History Month likely to kindle heated discussion about a controversial but curious link between reparations for American descendants of African slaves and cancellation of African debt.
Did Saddam Hussein buy support in Russia and the West? (Part I)
(February 16, 2004) The Iraqi daily newspaper "Al-Mada" published a sensational expose on 25 January of companies, organizations, and individuals whom it alleges were bribed with hundreds of millions of barrels of oil by former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein in return for their political support and as payment for items prohibited under the interwar (1991-2003) embargo on Iraq. Headlined "Presidents, Journalists, and Political Parties Received Millions of Oil Barrels From Saddam," the article listed the names of 270 alleged recipients.
US should not decide apartheid lawsuit: Switzerland
(February 13, 2004) The Swiss government has spoken out against an American court deciding a class action lawsuit seeking reparations for apartheid from dozens of international companies.
Ernst & Young returns to Iraq
(February 13, 2004) The new Baghdad office will be part of a grander strategy to increase Ernst & Young’s Middle East presence in a big way.
Sponsorship report leaves reader feeling numb
(February 12, 2004) If the stale Liberal party can emerge from this mess with a fresh majority mandate this spring, Canada is indeed a nation with too many cheques and not enough balances.
Descendants of slaves revive lawsuit
(February 12, 2004) The descendants of African American slaves are pressing on with what is being called an historic class-action lawsuit claiming 19 corporations profited from the forced labour of their ancestors.
Iraq establishes commission on public integrity
(February 12, 2004) The Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA) in Iraq has established a Commission on Public Integrity, which will enforce anticorruption laws and set public-service standards.
Algeria launches Iraq oil corruption probe
(February 11, 2004) Algeria is investigating alleged corruption linked to Iraq’s oil-for-food programme, state radio said, adding weight to Iraqi efforts to get to the bottom of crude dealing during Saddam Hussein’s rule.


