Shocking News - Corruption Linked to DR

Apr 26, 2002
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NEW YORK (Reuters) - Federal prosecutors are investigating whether or not Enron Corp. bribed foreign government officials to win contracts abroad, the Wall Street Journal reported on Monday.

The Justice Department's Enron Task Force is examining the energy company's non-U.S. operations for possible criminal violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, the paper said citing government officials and lawyers close to the case.

Enron was quoted in the Journal as denying ever paying bribes, and said that it had "a clear anticorruption policy prohibiting the payment, solicitation and receipt of bribes in any form."

The inquiry centers on Enron's efforts to win foreign pipeline, power and water-privatization projects, as far back as the mid-1990s, the sources were cited as saying.

In some countries, projects were awarded to Enron without competitive bidding, or assets were acquired at below-market values, according to the Journal, amid allegations by the World Bank ( news - web sites) and others of government favoritism.

Claims of corruption in Enron power or water projects have arisen over the years in several countries, including Ghana, Colombia, Bolivia, Panama, Nigeria and the Dominican Republic, the paper said.

Enron filed for bankruptcy last year after it collapsed amid accounting irregularities.

The Journal also reported that while charges against former Enron executives were only a matter of time, they still could take weeks, or even months, given the complexities and scope of the activities underlying the Houston company's collapse.

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I'm shocked, shocked, to find out that there might be corruption related to the Enron power plant in the DR!!!

But, seriously, how could American companies compete in the developing world if this extraterritorial law were enforced? The French, Spanish, Brits, Italians, etc., have no such laws, and are free to bribe their way into all kinds of government contracts in the developing world.

Luckily, the US law is NOT generally enforced, but is, like most laws, selectively enforced - in this case for political purposes. Bush, to show the folks in voter-rich California that he's not giving his Texas comrades a break, needs to make an example of Enron for transgressions that cannot be linked back to Bush and his people (such as causing California's energy crisis or needling into federal engergy policy - all of which can be linked back to Bush or his people). It's always easy to find lawbreaking if you target the entity first, and then decide on which laws were broken later.
 

marion harshman

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Jan 2, 2002
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Enron corruption

e-mailed The Wall Street Journal this morning. Enron came to Costambar on the North Coast 10 years ago with there promises or power. Claimed no pollution no noise 24 hours of service. Black dust.sounds like a 747 taking off and maybe at best when started 7 hours of service. Their claim of a bad contract with the Govt. is Bull. The Company is lying.