Corruption provokes Aden citizens as pro-coalition government siphons off treasury for officials abroad
ADEN, Aug. 27 (YPA) – While millions of Yemenis suffer from severe economic crises, a lack of services, and months-long delays in salaries for soldiers and teachers, government corruption is at its worst in the southern and eastern governorates controlled by the Saudi-led coalition-backed government. This government continues to loot what remains of the state treasury for officials living abroad who have no real duties or performance.
In a recent revelation, southern journalist and politician Fathi Bin Lazraq highlighted this financial scandal and corruption by the coalition-aligned Presidential Leadership Council government. He exposed shocking information about “massive” government spending, revealing that $11 million was transferred in a single payment to the accounts of officials residing abroad under the pretext of “monthly subsistence allowances.”
This comes at a time when the southern and eastern governorates are experiencing a severe economic crisis and delays in paying salaries for teachers and public sector employees.
Bin Lazraq, who is also the editor-in-chief of the “Aden Al Ghad” newspaper, stated in a post on X (formerly Twitter), “It is a disgrace that millions of dollars are transferred abroad while thousands of employees within the country, including teachers whose salaries do not exceed 60,000 riyals, have not received their wages for months.”
He added, “We ask them to return to work, while millions are given to those living in hotels and cafes outside Yemen. This absurdity must stop.”
Bin Lazraq called for an end to the monthly dollar-based subsistence allowances for officials residing abroad, stressing that anyone who wishes to receive their salary must return to Yemen and receive it in Yemeni riyals and according to the official salary scale.
He confirmed that the continuation of these policies is a “full-fledged crime against a people who cannot find their daily sustenance,” noting that the thousands of dollars spent monthly only boost the restaurant and cafe sector in Riyadh, Cairo, and Istanbul.
800 billion riyals for “expatriates with no work”
In a related context, southern activists re-circulated previous statements by the former director of the National Bank of Aden, Mohammed Halboub. Halboub revealed that the so-called “legitimate” government aligned with the coalition spends huge monthly sums on nearly 2,000 officials abroad, most of whom are in Egypt. The monthly subsistence allowance for each individual ranges from three to eight thousand dollars, in addition to their local currency salaries.
According to Halboub, the total amount spent in just one year reached about 815 billion Yemeni riyals, which is equivalent to nearly a quarter of the state budget. This is a dangerous indicator of the depth of corruption within the corridors of the authority that controls Yemen’s wealth-producing regions.
These facts come at a time when millions of Yemenis in the southern and eastern governorates are suffering from an unprecedented deterioration in their living conditions, amid a lack of accountability and the authorities’ continued spending on officials residing abroad. Meanwhile, basic services are deteriorating, and salaries for vital sectors like education, health, and security are being delayed.
These figures also expose the extent of the corruption plaguing the government and factions loyal to the Saudi-Emirati coalition, while they remain silent about the collapse of living and economic conditions in the areas under their control.
YPA