Al-Sudani approves new recommendations to combat corruption

Shafaq News / Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani has approved newrecommendations aimed at combating corruption in the collection of port fees, according to a statement released by the PM's media office.

In December 2022, al-Sudani's government formed a specialized committee to investigate corruption in port fee collection.

The recommendations were made by an audit committee that investigated complaints and reports of corruption in ports, particularly in the Port of Um Qasr.

The committee completed its work and submitted its recommendations to the Prime Minister, who approved them and directed the relevant departments to adopt them. The committee recommended referring the violations mentioned in its report to the Integrity Commission for investigation according to the law.

The committee also recommended that the necessary measures be taken to prepare the staff of the ports company to manage business at the port, and to address the issue of duplicate payments for the same service.

The committee recommended referring the violations mentioned in its report to the Integrity Commission for investigation according to the law. The violations included private sector companies contracted with the General Company for Ports in Iraq collecting extra fees, in violation of regulations, which resulted in extra costs being passed on to merchants and importers.

The committee also recommended not renewing contracts with private companies whose contracts will expire, preparing staff to manage port operations, addressing wage payment duplication, and opening multiple gates for truck exits.

The committee also recommended adopting electronic systems to avoid fraud and providing information to the relevant review committee to raise recommendations to the Prime Minister's office within 60 days.