$8.8 billion isn't serious money though...

[Peregrine]

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/5763483/

"At least $8.8 billion in Iraqi funds that was given to Iraqi ministries by the former U.S.-led authority there cannot be accounted for, according to a draft U.S. audit set for release soon.

The audit by the Coalition Provisional Authority’s own inspector general blasts the CPA for “not providing adequate stewardship” of at least $8.8 billion from the Development Fund for Iraq that was given to Iraqi ministries.

The audit was first reported on a Web site earlier this month by David Hackworth, a journalist and retired colonel. A U.S. official confirmed that the contents of the leaked audit cited by Hackworth were accurate.

The development fund is made up of proceeds from Iraqi oil sales, frozen assets from foreign governments and surplus from the U.N. oil for food program. Its handling has already come under fire in a U.N.-mandated audit released last month.

Ghost workers

Among the draft audit’s findings were that payrolls in Iraqi ministries under the control of the Coalition Provisional Authority were padded with thousands of ghost employees.

In one example, the audit said the CPA paid for 74,000 guards even though the actual number could not be validated. In another, 8,206 guards were listed on a payroll but only 603 people doing the work could be counted.

Three Democratic senators — Ron Wyden of Oregon, Tom Harkin of Iowa and Byron Dorgan of North Dakota — demanded an explanation from Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld over the use of the funds by the CPA, which handed over authority to the Iraqis in June.

“The CPA apparently transferred this staggering sum of money with no written rules or guidelines for ensuring adequate managerial, financial or contractual controls over the funds,” said the letter sent by the senators on Thursday.

‘Serious questions’
“Such enormous discrepancies raise very serious questions about potential fraud, waste and abuse,” said the senators.

A spokesman for the CPA inspector general’s office confirmed “field work” had been completed on the audit but declined to give specifics. He said auditors were awaiting comment from the Pentagon before releasing the final report, probably later this month.

The Pentagon did not immediately respond to questions.

An international audit report released last month that was requested by a U.N.-mandated monitoring body chided the CPA for oversight of spending of Iraq’s oil revenue."

[KeyserSoze]

Anyone can lost $8.8 billion... Just myself this morning wake up and said "hell I ve lost $8.8 billion that I´ve in my pocket..."

[Glengoyne]

This is bad stuff. Corruption is the biggest enemy to democracy. It is essential that the general public has faith that the government will act without at least overt corruption. The governing officials need the deterrent of knowing that if they are caught, the cost will be too great. I understand how this could happen, because developing and maintaing the security and infrastructure for twenty million people or so puts a lot of things on your plate. It is still disappointing to think that someone with a helluva lot of authority turned all this cash loose without putting much effort into accounting for it. Hopefully those (presumably Iraqis) accountable for the apparent theft will be made examples of.

[rkmsuf]

someone get George Clooney

[miked]

A spokesman for the CPA inspector general’s office confirmed “field work” had been completed on the audit but declined to give specifics. He said auditors were awaiting comment from the Pentagon before releasing the final report, probably later this month.

In other words, we're waiting to see which damaging things become "classified" before we tell you what's really going on.