POLITICS
PROSECUTORS GATHER FOR GENERAL MEETING TO DISCUSS OFFENSES IN THE SYSTEM OF NATURAL GAS, ELECTRICITY AND WATER SUPPLY TO CONSUMERS
Prosecutor General Zakir Garalov said over the last years his office has taken concrete measures against non-payments for natural gas, electricity and water, and other offences in this field. According to him, eight criminal cases have been launched against the natural gas distribution company “Azerigaz” and its subordinate structures with seven officials arrested on charges of corruption, and the prosecutors are now investigating offences committed by officials of the electricity distribution company “Electricity Network Barmek-Azerbaijan.”
In total, said Mr. Garalov, thirty legal proceedings have been taken over the last two years against employees of those companies for variety of offences including office abuse and misappropriation by inspectors of consumer’s payments for natural gas and electricity; forty officials have already been proven guilty in a court.
He charged prosecutors with insuring comprehensive and impartial investigation into the crimes related to distribution of natural gas, electricity and water, and working out - jointly with Justice Ministry - proposals on improvement of the existing legislation, which he said does not meet today’s demands. He also advised to use Turkey’s experience in this field.
The Prosecutors at the meeting decided to create an ad hoc commission consisting of employees of the anti-corruption Department, as well as representatives of the ministries of Fuel and Energy, Finance, Taxes, Audit Chamber and State Postal Service “Azerpocht” of the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology to reveal offences connected with distribution of natural gas, electricity and water, and examine how cashless settlement ise organized in Shaki, Geranboy, Shamakha and Salyan regions, and whether the collected payments are transferred to the budget completely.