Zuckerman expects an agreement with Hadi to return some of the looted funds

English - Monday 16 May 2022 الساعة 08:21 pm
Aden, NewsYemen, special:

The American expert specializing in national security and the Middle East, Irina Zuckerman, has not ruled out that the leaders in Yemen and Saudi Arabia have reached an agreement with former Yemeni President Abd Rabbo Mansour Hadi, regarding the return of some of the money looted from public funding.

In an exclusive interview with NewsYemen, Irina Zuckerman said that the political leaders in Saudi Arabia and Yemen are tired of his mismanagement (Hadi) and his corruption.

 "I think they will let him retire quietly to avoid public scandals and keep some money," she added, "but they may come to an agreement that he (Hadi) will release some of the key money taken from public funding and return it very quietly without much publicity."

Zuckerman noted that Saudi Arabia has had a track record of recovering corrupt money in recent years and could likely be of great help in persuading Hadi and his officials in the same way.

 And I expected another possibility is the public investigations, but if this happens - according to the American expert - it will not happen immediately, but it will take time for various reasons.

 She explained: "The new council (the Presidential Leadership Council) is still defining its role and needs to know the process of transition to a permanent structure and needs to prepare for the Houthis and for the future after the end of the armistice period."

In her interview with NewsYemen, the American expert stressed that the Council will have to install new mechanisms to prevent corruption in the future.  So it is likely that past grievances will take some time to address.