Sudani coalition figure says deals ‘protecting the corrupt’, days after ally urged caution

BAGHDAD — Behind-the-scenes agreements are shielding corrupt officials, the head of the political bureau of Mohammed Shia al-Sudani’s Reconstruction and Development Coalition said, days after a member of the same coalition warned that investigating senior figures could threaten Iraq’s political system.

“Negative behaviors and practices have infiltrated some administrative structures, starting from ordinary employees and reaching senior administrative levels, including department heads, directors-general, deputy ministers and ministers,” Haider al-Fuwadi told the Iraqi News Agency. There are “agreements taking place behind the scenes that provide protection to corrupt figures,” he said, without naming anyone.

Fuwadi said Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi’s anti-corruption measures were “important and necessary and require support from political forces and all state institutions to save the state, because financial and administrative corruption threatens the structure of institutions.” He called on parliament to pass laws strengthening government oversight bodies and on the government to submit the legislation it needs. “A system can only be confronted by a corresponding system,” he said.

It comes after another line taken on Monday by Ali al-Fatlawi of the same coalition, who said starting investigations at the top “would threaten the political process as a whole” and argued for working upward from junior officials. Sudani himself said Tuesday that restricting weapons to the state should come through dialogue rather than confrontation.

A court ordered the arrest of former Labor and Social Affairs Minister Ahmed al-Asadi, who served in Sudani’s cabinet, under the illicit gains law and over alleged benefit from contracts he oversaw. Baghdad’s Karkh Court of Appeal has separately asked parliament to lift the immunity of lawmaker Nazem al-Asadi over contracts the ministry awarded to a company the court says he founded with Ahmed al-Asadi.

Investigations have widened since the arrest of former Deputy Oil Minister Adnan al-Jumaili in May, covering government contracts, money laundering and misuse of public funds. Investigators have itemized recoveries of about 82 billion dinars and $131.6 million in cash along with 424 kilograms of gold.