Arab News, Saturday, Aug 22, 2020 | Muharram 3, 1442
Saudi governors, commanders fired over corruption at tourism projects
Saudi Arabia:
Senior Saudi security commanders are among a number of officials who have
been sacked over corruption at tourism projects, the Saudi Press Agency (SPA)
reported on Friday.
Those dismissed by royal decree include the governors of the Red Sea coastal
cities of Umluj and Al-Wajh, the head of border security and other local
commanders, as well as officials from the Interior Ministry.
They are under investigation for facilitating encroachment on government lands
that are part of tourism projects under development along the Red Sea coast in
the historic city of AlUla and the mountain resort of Abha. The violations had a
“great impact on the completion of the projects” and caused “environmental
damage,” according to SPA.
Saudi Arabia, which introduced tourist visas for the first time last year, has
unveiled a series of multibillion-dollar tourism projects in an effort to
diversify the Kingdom’s oil-dependent economy.
This dismissals are part of the government’s latest crackdown on corruption.
Saudi lawyer Dimah Talal Al-Sharif said that the laws on corruption are very
clear, though cases can be complicated.
“Corruption cases are considered one of the most complex types of cases due to
the overlap of many people and specialties in them,” she said.
It is an important requirement of such cases that the authorities take all
necessary steps to provide proper protection for witnesses, she added. This is
in keeping with the provisions of the United Nations Convention against
Corruption, “which calls for the enactment of the necessary legislation to
protect witnesses in corruption crimes in member states.” However, Al-Sharif
said that it can be difficult to ensure their identities are not revealed,
particularly in cases where a witness is one of few people with knowledge of the
corruption.
The Saudi National Anti-Corruption Authority (Nazaha) conducted dozens of
“criminal investigation procedures” in March in relation to breaches of public
duty. The initial investigation targeted 219 employees but in the end statements
were taken from 674 people, 298 of whom were arrested over accusations of
financial and administrative corruption, including bribery, embezzlement and
waste of public funds. The total amount involved was SR379 million ($101
million), and the cases will be referred to the courts.
The suspects accused of bribery and money laundering include eight army
officers, one of whom is a major general, and retired officers who allegedly
misused their government contracts at the Ministry of Defense to commit
financial crimes.
During a crackdown against corruption launched in 2017, hundreds of princes,
ministers and businessmen were detained at the luxury Ritz-Carlton hotel in the
capital, Riyadh. Many were held there for weeks, although most were released
after agreeing significant financial settlements. Authorities said they
recovered more than SR400 billion.
Meanwhile, attorney general Sheikh Saud bin Abdullah Al-Mua’jab has issued an
order specifying a list of major crimes that require arrest, according to
Article 112 of the Law on Criminal Procedure. The 25 classifications include:
border crimes punishable by death or amputation; intentional or semi-intentional
homicide; crimes against national security; offenses punishable by imprisonment
for more than three years; crimes defined under law as major crimes requiring
arrest; and other commercial crimes.