Social networks in Tajikistan were stirred up by the message that in the bank account in the name of Kasym Rokhbar during the period from 2004 to 2011, 8,883,230 Swiss francs or 9,642,458 US dollars were kept. However, the official authorities didn’t react to this news in any way; neither the Anti-Corruption Agency nor the Prosecutor General’s Office made any statement on this matter.
Journalists from various publications tried to contact Kasym Rokhbar for comments the next day after the publication, and then, through the head of his Apparatus, he said that he wouldn’t comment on anything. However, 5 days later, Kasym Rokhbar gave an interview to the pro-government newspaper “USSR”. So, he said that in 2001 a certain foreign businessman opened an account on his behalf, who then conducted his business in Sughd region of Tajikistan, while he was being treated in Austria after being injured. “When I was recovering from anesthesia, he brought several documents to sign. The documents were in English and German; I didn’t pay much attention to their content. I signed and gave a copy of my passport,” the Tajik official said.
Experts say that even this explanation of this high-ranking official is contrary to the truth. “In order to open an account with Credit Suisse, a personal visit by the applicant is required. This person signs the application and provides a sample of his signature in the presence of a bank employee,” said a lawyer who wished to remain anonymous.
On Monday, February 28, journalists accidentally met with Kasym Rokhbar in Hissar sanatorium “Shaambary” (now he heads Hissar district, one of the richest districts in the country), where he was walking with Rustam Khalikov, the ex-general director of Tajik Air, while working in this position, the airline’s debt increased by 50%, and the level of revenue decline amounted to 1118%.
They were accompanied by Murodali Alimardon, former Deputy Prime Minister, ex-Chairman of the National Bank, who was dismissed from this post in 2008 after the scandal with the International Monetary Fund. Then the Fund accused the government of Tajikistan of providing “inaccurate information” about the National Bank’s gold and foreign exchange reserves. “During the audit, numerous violations were revealed, in particular, the transfer of public funds to private companies run by Alimardon himself or his close relatives.”
When asked by journalists about how he plans to spend more than 9 million dollars found in his Swiss bank account, Kasym Rokhbar answered without a shadow of embarrassment that he knows how to spend money, especially other people’s.
This message caused a flurry of comments in social networks. Some people were indignant, others were ironic over the words of the official: “Does he know how to spend other people’s money? How right he said!”, “It would be better if he didn’t say anything”, “He stole from us in our country and still has a long tongue”, “The circus left, but the clowns were forgotten”, “Can I get anesthesia, even if they open an account in my name in a Swiss bank?”, “Why is the Anti-Corruption Agency not investigating it?” …
Leave feedback about this