(Edited title); Board monitoring Iraq oil revenues releases audit - UN

[Zorra]

Board monitoring Iraq oil revenues releases audit - UN

16 July 2004 – The international oversight body for Iraqi oil sales has released an initial audit of the Development Fund for Iraq (DFI), which was set up last year to take over management of the country's petroleum revenues, the United Nations announced today.
snip---
KPMG also qualified its audit opinion of the DFI's statement of cash receipts and payments because of weaknesses in controls over oil extraction, including the absence of metering. The Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA) believes that unknown quantities of oil were smuggled, bypassing the authorized processes of marketing, sales and cash collection.

CPA control weaknesses included a lack of clearly defined roles and responsibilities for personnel as well as a high staff turnover. Inadequate accounting systems were also to blame. Further, the IAMB pointed to the "non-adherence" in a number of instances to controls over spending allocations as well as "the uneven application of agreed-upon contracting procedures, including inadequate record-keeping."

Iraqi spending ministries were faulted on a number of fronts, including inadequate accounting records, deviations from the tendering procedures designed to ensure competitive bidding and insufficient payroll records.

http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=11381&Cr=iraq&Cr1=

[lovuian]

1. Doh!!!

Ya gotta be kidding right!!!

HELLO!!!

thats the fun about Oil ...put it in a tanker head it to Turkey and Kuwait and Nobody knows how many Billions ya stole

[maddezmom]

2. bet Unka Dick knows where it went n/t

[RC]

3. Smells like Halliburton is cheneying everyone again.

[Zorra]

4. Uh-oh, more Info:

US accused of audit ploy
By Colum Lynch
New York
July 17, 2004

Page Tools
Email to a friend Printer format
The US Government is withholding information from UN-sanctioned auditors examining more than $US1 billion in contracts awarded to Halliburton and other companies in Iraq without competitive bidding, the head of an international auditing panel has said.

Jean-Pierre Halbwachs, chairman of the International Advisory and Monitoring Board, said the US had repeatedly rebuffed his requests since March to turn over internal audits, including one that covered three contracts valued at $1.4 billion that were awarded to Halliburton, a Texas-based oil services firm. It had also failed to produce a list of other companies that had obtained contracts without having to compete.

The board, which includes representatives from the UN, the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund, was established by the UN Security Council in May 2003 to ensure that Iraq's oil revenues were managed responsibly during the US occupation. Its mandate has been extended by the council so that it could continue to monitor the use of Iraq's oil revenue after the US transferred political authority to the Iraqis in June.

The dispute comes as the board released an initial audit by the accounting firm KPMG on Thursday that sharply criticised the US-led coalition's management of billions of dollars in Iraqi oil revenue. The audit noted lax financial controls within some Iraqi ministries, citing poor bookkeeping and duplicate payments of salaries to government employees

http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2004/07/16/1089694556429.html?oneclick=true

[They_LIHOP]

5. Now lets see if Faux Covers this News...

Let see if our friends at Faux covers this story with the multi-day vehemence they covered the UN "Oil for Food" scandal, as outlined in the memos from Moody (that were released by the 'Outfoxed' creator and posted at wonkette)to Faux management.

Who wants to bet that Faux won't TOUCH this scandal with a ten-foot pole?

[Calico Jack Rackham]

6. O'reilly told me that

Saddam was smuggling it through his prison bars straight to Jaques Chirac and the rest of those Frogs. (sarcasm off)

[Moderator]

7. Zorra

Please edit the title of your thread. If not it will be locked because the rules of Latest Breaking News are that the title must match exactly. It should read:

Board monitoring Iraq oil revenues releases audit - UN

--Moderator

[struggle4progress]

8. IAMB Concerns Over the Control and Use of Iraqi Oil Assets

... the IAMB has repeatedly raised the following issues with the CPA:

The absence of oil metering. The IAMB recommended in March 2004 the expeditious installation of metering equipment in accordance with standard oil industry practices. Contrary to earlier representations by the CPA, the award of metering contracts has been delayed and it is therefore impossible to ascertain that all oil extraction is properly accounted for.

The use of barter transactions for certain oil sales. The IAMB has been concerned that barter transactions are not reflected in the DFI as required by UNSCR 1483. The IAMB understands that some bartering of oil for electricity with a neighboring country continues. The use of barter transactions makes it difficult to determine whether fair value has been received for Iraq's oil revenues.

The use of non-competitive bidding procedures for some contracts funded from the DFI. DFI funds were used to award contracts on a non-competitive basis. To ascertain the conditions and circumstances, the IAMB has requested copies of reports on audits of sole-sourced contracts that have already been undertaken by various US agencies, before determining whether additional audits are necessary. Despite repeated requests, these reports have still to be made available to the IAMB.

The results of a review of controls in the State Oil Marketing Organization (SOMO). The CPA commissioned a review of controls in SOMO by KPMG in February 2004. The review was substantially complete in May 2004, but the IAMB has neither been briefed nor received the draft report, despite requests to the CPA ...

http://www.iamb.info/pr/pr071504.htm
(15 July 2004 Press Release)

[Zorra]

9. Nice link. IAMB has repeatedly raised the following issues with the CPA:

The absence of oil metering.

Enron/Halliburton invades Iraq, steals Iraqi resources through fraud.

Samuel Bu$h. Prescott Bu$h. George H. W. Bu$h.

George W. Bu$h. The Bu$h family tradition continues. Fraud, deception, and profit from war.

Disgraceful slime.

[DeepModem Mom]

10. kick