Syrian campaign for internal reform
Syria, Politics, 10/23/1999

In what appears to be the beginning of an internal reform campaign, the Syrian state-run media ( all media is run by the state) has recently resumed its campaign to unveil administrative corruption, thefts and ill- performance in certain public sides.

Recently the Syrian Tishreen Arabic local daily published three reportage, the first dealt with the bad-performance of one of the public sector's construction companies, the second exposed " thefts of public funds" in the agricultural bank and the last exposed to a rubbery at the national museum in Damascus.

The director general of the Agricultural bank Samih Allouch said that " the value of the so far stolen sums is estimated at 1.5 billion Syrian pounds ( approximately US $ 30 million).

In an interview published on October 21 in the Tishreen daily, Allouch made it clear that the " committees of the crediting Bank branches in the country's provinces and the administrative boards of the peasants cooperatives submitted " forged loans." He added it was found out that there are huge numbers of loans borrowed by people who do not use it in agriculture, while others got loans but they do not have lands.

Worthy mentioning that the Syrian government in the 1960s canceled private banks and established specialized public banks in the areas of industry, the real estates, agriculture and loans. The " Agricultural Bank" provides loans and fertilizers for peasants for backing the sector of agriculture.

Allouch ( the director of the main agricultural bank in Damascus) said that cooperation between " new cadres in the agricultural bank and the audition and inspection department central commission helped in discovering several thefts. He added that it was found out that " forged loans were sued to be offered and then converted into debts documents without acknowledging their owners of these documents through using the " identity card of a person" who has no relations to the whole matter.

In another separate article the Tishreen daily also criticized one of the public sector construction companies. The paper said that a road construction project of 58 Km carried out by the land reclamation project started in 1990 and until today only 10 KM have been constructed in an average of one (1) kilometer per year, as if the company is carrying out this road project by nail rather than equipment."

The paper said that the reason behind the slowness of work given by the company " does not justify this slowness because the road is considered one of the vital connection for the region," in the Eastern part of the country.

Tishreen has also published in its front page news of arresting one of the employees in the " national Museum in Damascus," while trying to sell a collection of artifacts to archaeological finds traders. The paper said that the employees admitted he stole the items while cleaning the halls and the warehouses of the museums. The paper said that it is the second theft taking place in the museum within three months.

Previous Stories:
  Raf'at al-Assad's port closed down in Lattakia   (10/21/1999)
  Damascus: Pardon covers 220,000 persons   (7/19/1999)
  Syrian government restores financial thefts   (6/23/1999)
  The silk road: An important landmark of human activity   (3/30/1999)
  A study on the Syrian economy   (1/20/1999)
  Syria's Khaddam offers surprising remarks and future vision   (3/3/1998)

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