Afghanistan Times
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AT Monitoring Desk-KABUL: The European Union envoy to Kabul on Wednesday said that despite a focused effort by the Afghan government to fight corruption in security institutions, but new reports surface frequently about nepotism and fraud in army and police ranks.
Mostly driven from the top, corruption impeded the effectiveness of the security forces, allowing the Taliban insurgents to gain strength on the battlefields, claiming weapons and other supplies had been purchased to the insurgents.
“Peace in Afghanistan is possible. But to get there we need to see several things happen. Very important is that the Afghan security forces continue to improve their abilities to deny the Taliban major progress on the battlefield,” said the EU special representative.
Ambassador Franz-Michael Mellbin emphasized on the need for continued professionalization of the security forces, especially focusing on better control and command. He also called for a reinforced fight against corruption in security institutions.
The EU in Afghanistan is going to launch the fourth and final theme of its 2017 anti-corruption campaign focused on corruption free security sector.
Melbin said: “We want to highlight the major problems in the security areas, but we also want to recognize some of the good things that are actually happening.
“Because we do acknowledge that the Government, NATO’s Resolute Support mission and other partners in the international community have helped Afghanistan make progress in said area. But we still need to see much more done and it needs to happen now.”
Anti-corruption drive is underway. In the nearest times, government has dismissed many from the civil and military administration in connection of corruption, even military generals and other high-ranking officials were sent behind bars. In a report released on Tuesday, the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) has welcomed government’s efforts, resulting in progress in fighting corruption in all sectors of the government. However, further efforts are needed to address and eliminate corruption for the sake of the country’s future. Regarding the issue, joint efforts and commitment of the government and its international partners would bring result-oriented outcomes.
