Approximately US$ 530,000 has been stolen from the Somali Central Bank, bank governor, Mr. Bashir Isse Ali has confirmed on Thursday.
“Investigations are underway in a bid to identify those involved in the theft of US$ 530,000 from the bank. The investigations are looking at both internal parties within the Central Bank as well as external involvement. We will bring to justice anyone who was involved in that massive embezzlementâ€, said the Central Bank Chairman.
The bank governor, Mr. Bashir Isse Ali, did not provide further details.
Top leaders in the country’s national authorities have warned that a lot of money tends to be stolen from government offices during the transition period following an election as outgoing leaders are preparing to transfer power.
The Somalia national election is slated for later this year 2016, and the people are preparing to take part in that election. It has been a worrying trend that every year before an election, allegations relating to money being stolen from Somali government offices crop up. This has happened severally during past elections.
Somalia and North Korea are listed as the worst-performing countries when it comes to dealing with corruption, according to Transparency International.
(Writing by Hassan Istiila. Editing by Julian Kamau)
