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Sajad Jiyad March 30th, 2023
The Mechanisms of Corruption in Iraq
0 comments | 17 shares
Estimated reading time: 10 minutes
by Sajad Jiyad
...
While it is well known that Iraq is entrenched in corruption and that the
political elite are the key enablers of it,
the exact mechanisms of how corruption operates is not well understood.
A peculiar social phenomenon of Iraq is that public debate on corruption is constant, and
politicians engage widely on the topic but published research is limited.
...
Despite the competing political interests, the elevation of the economic interest above all else has led to a cooperative power-sharing arrangement dominating post-2005 Iraq.
This article previews a forthcoming report that will investigate the mechanisms by which the political elite in Iraq conduct corruption, mostly of the extractive type, and allows them to maintain a decentralised grip on power.
The most important element that allows corruption to operate systemically in Iraq is the political elite’s control of the state through all its institutions and at all levels.
Regime change in 2003 led to various parties taking over the state progressively and eventually led to the power-sharing system known as muhasasa, which is a method of apportionment of positions in the state based on the size of each party’s power and influence, usually measured through their seats in parliament.
The parties apply the muhasasa to every possible institution in the state, meaning the networks of the political elite spread through the state like a mesh.
...
Because the corruption in Iraq is systemic there are many types of corruption schemes in operation.
The first type involves public procurement and contracting,
...
The second type is theft of public funds using embezzlement (such as the ‘Heist of the century’).
The third is patronage (to ensure voters, loyalists and members are rewarded by pushing them into the public sector), payroll fraud (through abseentism or ghost employees) and salary skimming.
The fourth is smuggling of oil and derivatives, contraband and fake goods.
The fifth is facilitating the narcotics trade and other similar trades.
The sixth is bribery, extortion, blackmail for political or purely financial purposes.
In the middle of all of this is a key relationship that is not well known, that between the political elite and the businessmen who benefit from these schemes.
It is a kind of political-corporate complex in which politicians do not engage directly in corruption but work with businessmen who may have no political loyalties but are willing to facilitate corruption and launder proceeds from it in return for a cut.
...
Violence is a readily available tool that the political elite resort to, especially as most of the established parties have armed wings,
...
Iraq has the potential to be better but so far the political elite are relaxed enough that they do not feel the need to undertake reforms.
About the author
Sajad Jiyad
Sajad Jiyad is an Iraqi political analyst based in Baghdad and a fellow at The Century Foundation. Sajad’s main focus is on public policy and governance in Iraq. He tweets at @SajadJiyad
Posted In: Iraq
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The Mechanisms of Corruption in Iraq
0 comments | 17 shares
Estimated reading time: 10 minutes
by Sajad Jiyad
...
While it is well known that Iraq is entrenched in corruption and that the
political elite are the key enablers of it,
the exact mechanisms of how corruption operates is not well understood.
A peculiar social phenomenon of Iraq is that public debate on corruption is constant, and
politicians engage widely on the topic but published research is limited.
...
Despite the competing political interests, the elevation of the economic interest above all else has led to a cooperative power-sharing arrangement dominating post-2005 Iraq.
This article previews a forthcoming report that will investigate the mechanisms by which the political elite in Iraq conduct corruption, mostly of the extractive type, and allows them to maintain a decentralised grip on power.
The most important element that allows corruption to operate systemically in Iraq is the political elite’s control of the state through all its institutions and at all levels.
Regime change in 2003 led to various parties taking over the state progressively and eventually led to the power-sharing system known as muhasasa, which is a method of apportionment of positions in the state based on the size of each party’s power and influence, usually measured through their seats in parliament.
The parties apply the muhasasa to every possible institution in the state, meaning the networks of the political elite spread through the state like a mesh.
...
Because the corruption in Iraq is systemic there are many types of corruption schemes in operation.
The first type involves public procurement and contracting,
...
The second type is theft of public funds using embezzlement (such as the ‘Heist of the century’).
The third is patronage (to ensure voters, loyalists and members are rewarded by pushing them into the public sector), payroll fraud (through abseentism or ghost employees) and salary skimming.
The fourth is smuggling of oil and derivatives, contraband and fake goods.
The fifth is facilitating the narcotics trade and other similar trades.
The sixth is bribery, extortion, blackmail for political or purely financial purposes.
In the middle of all of this is a key relationship that is not well known, that between the political elite and the businessmen who benefit from these schemes.
It is a kind of political-corporate complex in which politicians do not engage directly in corruption but work with businessmen who may have no political loyalties but are willing to facilitate corruption and launder proceeds from it in return for a cut.
...
Violence is a readily available tool that the political elite resort to, especially as most of the established parties have armed wings,
...
Iraq has the potential to be better but so far the political elite are relaxed enough that they do not feel the need to undertake reforms.
About the author
Sajad Jiyad
Sajad Jiyad is an Iraqi political analyst based in Baghdad and a fellow at The Century Foundation. Sajad’s main focus is on public policy and governance in Iraq. He tweets at @SajadJiyad
Posted In: Iraq
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