Prime Minister Muhammad Shiaa Al-Sudani approved the recommendations of the audit committee, which investigated the origins of complaints and reports on allegations of corruption in ports, specifically in the port of Umm Qasr.
Al-Sudani had directed the formation of a specialized committee on December 15, 2022, by a Diwani order, to check these communications.
The Committee completed its work and submitted its recommendations regarding violations in the collection of port fees to the Prime Minister, who endorsed them and directed their approval according to the competence of the concerned departments.
The Committee recommended that the violations mentioned in its report be referred to the Integrity Commission to conduct an investigation in accordance with the law about the private sector companies contracting with the General Company for Iraqi Ports collecting additional wages other than the wages approved by the Ministry of Transport in contravention of the controls, which charged merchants and importers with additional sums on the goods and thus charged the citizen has the consequences of this by raising the prices of those goods.
The Committee recommended that the Ministry of Transport take some measures, represented by limiting the amounts collected from private sector companies to prevent raising the prices of goods, as well as studying the conclusion of appendices to partnership contracts with the private sector to ensure an increase in the share of the General Ports Company, and the development of infrastructure, otherwise the contracts are terminated according to the stipulated conditions.
The Committee also recommended not to renew partnership contracts with private companies whose contractual terms will expire and to take the necessary measures to prepare the cadres of the port company to manage the business in the port, to address the case of repeated payment of wages for the same service, and to submit the results to the office of the Prime Minister within 30 days, in addition to recommending not to renewal of the contract concluded with a private company.
The committee recommended, with regard to the work of the General Company for Iraqi Ports, that multiple gates be opened for the exit of trucks and that the process not be limited to specific gates, as well as the adoption of electronic systems in collection to avoid forgery, and the provision of information to the committee specialized in reviewing investment contracts and submitting recommendations to the office of the Prime Minister during 60 days.
As for the work of the Border Crossings Authority, the committee recommended expanding supervision and monitoring of port facilities, monitoring the workflow of all departments, providing modern sonar devices to examine outgoing goods and detect their contents, installing surveillance cameras inside the docks, yards, and warehouses, comprehensive monitoring, and supervising and auditing the payment phenomenon of additional fees and take legal action for against violators.
The Committee also recommended conducting periodic reconciliation of outgoing goods information with the Ports Authority, Customs, Taxes and Port Administration, as well as supervising the security sonar by the Ministry of Interior and not relying on private companies in this regard.
Source: National Iraqi News Agency