Chad says $20m lost at state-owned hydrocarbons firm
The authorities in Chad have said more than $20m (£16m) was allegedly embezzled from a state-owned hydrocarbons company.
Information Minister Abderaman Koulamallah made the accusation on national television on Wednesday.
But a bank named in the alleged scandal has threatened to sue for defamation and has strongly denied any involvement in the transactions in question.
The minister – who is also the government spokesman – said “there was an investigation which led to the revelation of embezzlement at the Société des Hydrocarbures du Tchad”.
The government had appointed a new head and deputy two days before the announcement.
The former managers were arrested by the Chadian intelligence services.
The opposition party has asked for a change in the transition team governing the country following the death of President Idriss Déby in April last year.
On Tuesday, the UN World Food Programme warned that one in 10 Chadian children suffer from malnutrition. In June, the head of the transitional military council, Mahamat Déby Itno – son of the former president, declared a food emergency in the country.
source: bbc
