| | | Date: May 30, 2018 | | Source: The Daily Star |  |  |  |
| | Egypt officials arrested, suspected of taking bribes from commodity firms | Reuters
CAIRO: Four Egyptian officials including the chairman of the state Food Industries Holding Company (FIHC) have been arrested on suspicion of taking bribes from commodities trading firms, state news MENA reported Tuesday.
The other officials include a supply ministry advisor responsible for coordination with parliament, a supply ministry spokesmen, and an official in the FIHC chairman's office, according to MENA.
The companies were not named but described as "major suppliers of food commodities" by MENA, which said the bribes, exceeded 2 million Egyptian pounds ($112,000) and were given to officials in return for help in facilitating "purchase orders" and "payments of dues," without providing further details.
Egypt is the world's biggest importer of wheat, with state-buyer GASC, an agency under the supply ministry, making over $1.5 billion worth of purchases annually to supply the country's sprawling bread subsidy program.
State-buyer FIHC oversees the purchase of other key commodities.
GASC and the supply ministry were not immediately available for comment. |
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