Hun Sen meeting with WB's Joong-Kyung Choi. (Photo: Chantha, Koh Santepheap newspaper)Friday, July 14, 2006
By Phann Ana and Erik Wasson
THE CAMBODIA DAILY
The World Bank on Thursday downplayed government reports that a senior Bank official expressed doubts about his own organization's corruption findings during a meeting with Prime Minister Hun Sen.
On Wednesday, World Bank Executive Director Joong-Kyung Choi met with Hun Sen at the Council of Ministers. Afterwards, Hun Sen's personal assistant Eang Sophallet told reporters that Choi had questioned his Bank's own investigation, which found evidence of corruption and fraud in seven Bank-funded projects, resulting in the suspension of three of them.
"Mr. Joong-Kyung Choi told Samdech Prime Minister [that] what had happened previously between Cambodia and the World Bank made both sides suffer," Eang Sophallet said. "And Mr. Joong's personal point of view was he thought the [World Bank Department of Institutional Integrity] investigation could not be regarded as 100-percent true. And he does not clearly know how much that the report reflected the truth," he said.
The World Bank issued a statement late Thursday on behalf of Choi, who represents the interests of Cambodia on the board of directors of the World Bank.
"Dr Choi notes that he is not prepared to judge the quality of the investigations conducted by the World Bank's Department of Institutional Integrity into allegations of corruption in World Bank-supported projects in Cambodia," the statement reads.
Eang Sophallet said that during the meeting, Hun Sen forcefully complained to Choi about the demand by the World Bank that the government refund money allegedly lost to corruption, comparing the Bank's demand to the Khmer Rouge genocide.
He also said that Cambodia will conduct its own investigation into the allegations of corruption and will repay the World Bank fluids where the government investigation finds wrongdoing.
He also said Hun Sen has agreed to allow independent procurement agents to manage World Bank contracts in the future.
On Wednesday, World Bank Executive Director Joong-Kyung Choi met with Hun Sen at the Council of Ministers. Afterwards, Hun Sen's personal assistant Eang Sophallet told reporters that Choi had questioned his Bank's own investigation, which found evidence of corruption and fraud in seven Bank-funded projects, resulting in the suspension of three of them.
"Mr. Joong-Kyung Choi told Samdech Prime Minister [that] what had happened previously between Cambodia and the World Bank made both sides suffer," Eang Sophallet said. "And Mr. Joong's personal point of view was he thought the [World Bank Department of Institutional Integrity] investigation could not be regarded as 100-percent true. And he does not clearly know how much that the report reflected the truth," he said.
The World Bank issued a statement late Thursday on behalf of Choi, who represents the interests of Cambodia on the board of directors of the World Bank.
"Dr Choi notes that he is not prepared to judge the quality of the investigations conducted by the World Bank's Department of Institutional Integrity into allegations of corruption in World Bank-supported projects in Cambodia," the statement reads.
Eang Sophallet said that during the meeting, Hun Sen forcefully complained to Choi about the demand by the World Bank that the government refund money allegedly lost to corruption, comparing the Bank's demand to the Khmer Rouge genocide.
He also said that Cambodia will conduct its own investigation into the allegations of corruption and will repay the World Bank fluids where the government investigation finds wrongdoing.
He also said Hun Sen has agreed to allow independent procurement agents to manage World Bank contracts in the future.
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