U.S. military’s work in Afghanistan has been one long mess.
The goal was to root out terrorism from the country and help their people regain control. Yet it’s been years and we’re still there, wasting millions of American tax dollars.
Perhaps the problem is worse than we think. Maybe every project in Afghanistan is the result of this kind of corruption.
From Daily Caller:
Former U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) employee Mark E. Miller pleaded guilty Tuesday to soliciting bribes from Afghan contractors to the tune of $320,000.
Miller, who hails from Springfield, Ill., was charged on July 18 with one count of seeking and receiving bribes, as he accepted cash from Afghans in exchange for helping them gain an advantage on contracts…
In 2009, USACE handed a $2.9 million dollar road construction project to an Afghan construction company. Later, the cost of the contract ballooned to $8.1 million.
Miller in the course of his work oversaw the projected and verified that construction was taking place. He also authorized payments to the company.
Miller admitted as part of his guilty plea that he solicited bribes from the company in return for ensuring the contract continued.
He received $280,000 for keeping the contract active and an extra $40,000 for potential contract opportunities that could have been awarded to the construction company.
It’s no secret that government-funded projects often go on far longer than they should. Their budgets increase at alarming rates. Yet not all of them are manipulated by corrupt leaders like Miller.
What he did in taking brides can be viewed by some as treason. He was defrauding the United States military, forcing them to spend significant amounts of money when it wasn’t needed. All to aid an Afghan company in milking the U.S.
It’s shocking to think an American, working for the USACE, would stoop to such levels. To take bribes in order to cheat the U.S.—you can’t get much lower.
But it’s not a total surprise. Afghanistan is rated 166 out of 188 of the most corrupt countries in the world. Stories have emerged how their army created fake soldiers to bilk us out of cash. After years of warfare and fighting, the country seems worse than it was before.
Perhaps the best thing the U.S. can do is get out of there completely.
Source: Daily Caller
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