KABUL - The Ministry of Defense (MoD) on Sunday said that it has authorized special military courts to investigate alleged involvement of military personnel in corruption schemes and embezzlement.
The investigations by military attorneys will also take in violation of professional rules, misconduct, misuse of official authorities and embezzlement.
The number of corruption cases relating to military personnel is estimated to be more than 1,000 cases, said a defense ministry spokesman Mohammad Radmanish.
“According to my information, these cases are related to soldiers including generals and the number of these cases are more than one thousand cases, we have achieved significant results from fighting corruption,” said Radmanish.
According to MoD, some high ranking officers are also among those accused of corruption.
“More than 125 cases have been processed and referred to the relevant courts for further action; fortunately we have received some verdicts from the courts on these cases,” said Jamshid Rasouli, spokesman for the AGO.
Speculation surrounds the number of military personnel involved in corruption in the ranks of the Afghan National Police (ANP) – cases were estimated to be 400 this solar year.
It is said that several high profile officers are involved in corruption in the Afghan police.
Experts say that the existence of corruption within the military ranks could endanger the work of the Afghan security forces.
“Corruption causes misconduct within the army, this also helps the enemy to easily infiltrate and it increases casualties and other irregularities including the removal of public trust in the army,” said military expert Atiqullah Amarkhail.
Selling of weapons and fuel are at the top of the corruption case list within the security institutions – but so too is the issue of ghost soldiers. (Tolonews)