Fearing a clampdown by the Palestinian Authority’s Anti-Corruption Commission,
many Palestinians have begun transferring their deposits from Jordanian banks to
accounts in Western countries, the Jordanian newspaper
Ad-Dustour reported on
Monday.
The commission has waged a campaign to restore stolen funds from
former PA officials suspected of involvement in financial corruption and
embezzlement, the newspaper said.
A large number of Palestinian officials
have resigned after being asked to sign a quittance detailing their finances and
property, according to the report.
The commission is currently
investigating 145 cases of financial corruption, but only 13 have been referred
to court, the newspaper said.
Two PA ministers were recently charged with
corruption and are now awaiting trial. They are Economics Minister Hassan Abu
Libdeh and Agriculture Minister Ismail Daiq.
The anti-corruption
commission is facing difficulties in investigating four ministers and a top
Palestinian security official, who are all suspected of involvement in
large-scale financial corruption, the Jordanian newspaper said.
Another
obstacle facing the commission is the fact that many suspects have deposited
large sums in Israeli banks, the report added.
The PLO, meanwhile, has
formed a special committee to try to restore PLO-owned property in several
countries whose fate remains unknown.
The chairman of the commission,
Rafik Natsheh, said the body was working to restore public funds stashed aboard
by Palestinian officials.
He told the Bethlehem-based Ma’an news agency
his commission would ask some countries to help restore the stolen public
money.
“Transferring money anywhere [abroad] will not prevent us from
calling suspects to account and restoring that money,” Natsheh said. “Any money
gained illegally must be returned.”