The latest corruption stories from around the globe: Brazil’s former president Lula da Silva faces probe amid allegations of influence-peddling, while China’s Communist Party expels one of its own from public office amid corruption allegations and South African sports journalists flees the country in fear for his life!
The scandal that ate Malaysia
The near collapse of a state-owned company has rocked the government, rattled investors, and stirred public outrage. – Bloomberg
Afghanistan: toppling corruption takes time
Fighting corruption in a warzone is not easy. This is especially true in a place like Afghanistan. Evidence suggests that corruption pervades many of Afghanistan’s key sectors and institutions. In 2012 an Asia Foundation public opinion survey of the Afghani people cited corruption as being ranked as the second biggest problem at a national level after insecurity, while Transparency International ranked Afghanistan at 172 out of 175 countries in the 2014 Corruption Perceptions Index. – Transparency International
Brazil: three executives guilty of graft in Petrobras scandal
Three executives of Brazil’s Camargo Correa group were convicted on Monday on money laundering, corruption and other charges, the first construction-industry executives to be sentenced in a giant price fixing and bribery scandal involving Petrobras, the state-run oil company. – NY Times
‘El Chapo’ escape shines spotlight on corruption in Mexico
Shocked, but not surprised.That’s how many Mexicans responded as word spread that notorious cartel kingpin Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman busted out of a maximum-security prison in a brazen escape. – CNN
Top Chinese official ousted from Communist Party
A top aide to China’s former president Hu Jintao who will face prosecution on corruption charges has been expelled from the Communist Party and removed from public office, Chinese state news media reported on Monday. – NY Times
Fifa: Jeffrey Webb pleads not guilty in New York
Former Fifa vice president Jeffrey Webb pleaded not guilty Saturday to federal racketeering and bribery charges in connection with a massive corruption scandal. – CNN
Bolivian football chief arrested in corruption probe
The president of Bolivia’s Football Federation has been arrested as part of a corruption inquiry, officials say. Carlos Chavez is also the treasurer of the South American Football Confederation, Conmebol. – BBC.com
Graeme Joffe flees South Africa
Former TV and radio sports presenter – and Sport24 columnist – Graeme Joffe fled South Africa three months ago. Writing on his Sportsfire Daily blog on Friday, Joffe spoke of how his life in South Africa changed forever following a late-night phone call earlier this year. – Sport24
Honduras: as protests over corruption swell, many see ‘positive moment’
Protesters have taken to the streets for eight straight weekends, angered by revelations of alleged government theft of social security funds and pushing for reform. – Christian Science Monitor
Brazil ex-president Lula da Silva in corruption probe
Prosecutors in Brazil have opened a formal investigation into allegations of influence-peddling by the former president, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva. The inquiry centres on whether Mr Lula had used his connections overseas improperly to help the Brazilian construction giant, Oderbrecht. – BBC.com
Drug trafficking, corruption bankroll Guatemalan politics, says report
Gangsters have infiltrated politics by financing campaigns, putting up candidates and creating construction companies to win government contracts. – The Guardian
