Iraqi President, Jalal Talabani, has asked the Iraqi Ministry of Finance to deposit US$2mil Baghdad – Jaafar Nasrawi At a time when most of the Iraqi population lives under the poverty line, the Iraqi President, Jalal Talabani, has asked the Iraqi Ministry of Finance to deposit US$2mil (2.4 billion Iraqi dinars), into his personal bank account to cover the cost of his visit to the UN this week.
The document, which is yet to be verified, has been published on social networking sites across the internet.
“On the order of His Excellency the President, please fund our account at the Rafidain Bank branch, Mansour, with US$2 million only for the purpose of covering the expenses of His Excellency in the United States.”
Talabani left for New York this morning to participate in the meetings of the UN General Assembly.
A statement from the President’s office added that "the Iraqi President will hold a speech at the General Assembly and will meet a number of heads of state."
The leak of this document comes as the political climate in Iraq becomes particularly tense.
Protests against corruption and governmental waste have taken place across Iraq since February 25th. The most recent protest took place just last week.
The protesters have called for Talibani to resign.
According to a report by Transparency International report in 2009, Iraq, Sudan and Burma were the equal-third most corrupt countries in the world, narrowly behind Somalia and Afghanistan.