Posted on 05/13/2003 7:38:54 AM PDT by dead
UNITED States oil services giant ,Halliburton, already under fire over accusations that its White House ties helped win a major Iraqi oil contract, has admitted that a subsidiary paid a multi-million dollar bribe to a Nigerian tax official. Halliburton,the world's number two oilfield services firm once run by Vice President Richard Cheney, revealed the illicit payments, worth 2.4 million dollars, in a filing last Thursday with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
"The payments were made to obtain favourable tax treatment and clearly violated our code of business conduct and our internal control procedures," Halliburton said.
Halliburton's subsidiary Kellogg Brown and Root (KBR), which paid the bribe, has been in the political spotlight since it was awarded a no-bid US government oil contract in Iraq.
KBR is building a liquefied natural gas plant and an offshore oil and gas terminal in Nigeria.
Halliburton told the SEC the bribe was discovered during an audit of KBR's Nigerian office.
The payments were made in 2001 and 2002, Halliburton spokeswoman Zelma Branch said. Cheney led the company as chief executive from 1995 until August 2000, when he became President George W. Bush's running mate.
"Based on the findings of the investigation we have terminated several employees," Halliburton said in the filing, adding that none of its senior officers was involved in the bribe.
"We are cooperating with the SEC in its review of the matter," Halliburton said. "We plan to take further action to ensure that our foreign subsidiary pays all taxes owed in Nigeria, which may be as much as an additional five million dollars, which has been fully accrued."
Halliburton said its code of business conduct and internal control procedures were "essential" to the way it ran its business.
The group is already facing questions over its business in Iraq and its accounting practices.
On Tuesday, a US lawmaker said the military had revealed for the first time that KBR had a contract encompassing the operation of Iraqi oil fields. Previously, the US Army Corps of Engineers had described the contract given to Halliburton as involving oil well firefighting. But in a May 2 letter replying to questions from Henry Waxman, a Democrat, the army said the contract also included "operation of facilities and distribution of products."
Waxman, the top-ranking Democrat in the House of Representatives' committee on government reform, asked for an explanation. "These new disclosures are significant and they seem at odds with the administration's repeated assurances that the Iraqi oil belongs to the Iraqi people," Waxman said.
The Army Corps of Engineers had said it decided to forgo competitive bidding on the first contract because of time constraints. But in a May 2 letter responding to questions from Waxman, military programmes chief, Lieutenant General Robert Flowers said the military assigned the work to KBR's services division in November 2002, under a pre-existing contract for the firm to provide logistical support to the US Army worldwide.
Waxman has also criticized Halliburton for dealings with countries such as Iran, Iraq and Libya, cited by Washington as state sponsors of terrorism or members of the so-called "axis of evil".
While, obviously, Cheney had nothing to do with the bribe, it is an embarrassing situation for the administration.
It doesn't look good when a company you just awarded a huge, no-bid, international contract to is revealed to be doling out millions in bribes to corrupt officials. Especially when the veep has such a deep history with the outfit.
If you can't operate above board in Nigeria, how can you pull it off in Iraq?
Honestly, it looks like Halliburton's internal controls worked here. They should be praised for such a public accounting of abhorrent practices.
Because you can't do it Nigeria.
If that’s Halliburton’s policy than they are flat-out lying (and subject to some major lawsuits from the terminated employees) when they said their code of business conduct and internal control procedures were "essential" to the way they run their business.
Despite your assertion, I don't believe that is their policy.
Fine... go to Nigeria... (but bring plenty of cash, you are going to need it)
Personally, I'm not going to get all hot and indignant over the fact that Halliburton paid bribes to do business in Nigeria. If that is what it takes to do business over there... then chalk it up as another expense, just like paper clips.
Do they flout the law in this manner in many other countries?
:-)
URGENT BUSINESS ASSISTANCE NEEDED
Dear Sirs:
My name is Robert Mboai. Just recently, I was relieved of
my post as Undersecretary of Taxation for the Republic of Nigeria.
Before leaving office I received payments in excess of 2.4 million dollars
from Kellog Brown and Root (KBR), a subsidiary of Halliburton, for the favorable treatment under our tax laws.
This money is being held in a special account until it can be transferred
from Nigeria. YOUR URGENT ASSISTANCE IS REQUIRED.
In return for your assistance you will be paid 20%....
What did Halliburton ever do to you?
Thanks for playing!
And I didn't know you were Alex Trebrek.
I, apparently, am not the one with the low opinion of the ethical rigidity of Halliburton's company policies.
Brown and Root, a company once owned by Dim-O-Rat George Brown, who ran Texas politics for a generation, and the man who controlled every move LBJ ever made ......
Did they fire the guys? Then Haliburton seems to have handled it correctly.
I apparently, am not the one with the low opinion of the ethical rigidity of Halliburton's company policies.
OOOOHHHHH!!! Smugness... How unbecoming! Oh, well, you go right on being outraged. I've got better things to do...
But thanks for being so darn entertaining...LOL!
Did they fire the guys? Then Haliburton seems to have handled it correctly.
First, you say that Halliburton has no choice but to conduct their business in Nigeria this way, then you say that they were correct to fire the people that conducted their business this way.
Consistency and logic are not your strong points.
Now, you've insulted me... how will I go on.
If consistency and logic are not my strong points... then, reading comprehension seems to be a weakness on your part... (see I can insult too)
First, you say that Halliburton has no choice but to conduct their business in Nigeria this way...
No, what I said was bribery was a way of life in Nigeria, and you have to pay a bribe to get into the country. My comment had nothing to do with Halliburton, but with Nigeria.
I also said that it isn't an outrage to me if Halliburton paid bribes... I would count it as a necessary business expense, like paper clips.
Then, I said that Halliburton fired the guys, so Halliburton has seemed to do the right thing for Halliburton.
Where is my logic inconsistent?
Either your point that there's nothing wrong with the payments is incorrect, or your point that the firings were justified is incorrect.
The fact of the matter is that, despite your assertions otherwise, it is wrong for a company to pay bribes to government officials no matter how expedient. It was right for Halliburton to fire those responsible, though I wonder if they fired them high enough up the chain. I'm sure we will find out eventually.
I am saying that I find nothing wrong with paying bribes in a place where bribes are an accepted way of doing business.
I have twice now made a clarification between what I think is right and what Halliburton thinks is right. They fired the guys. I would not have.
So, no where did I say the firings were justified or unjustified. I am saying that Halliburton fired them... that's Halliburton's decision. I would not have fired them. Instead, I would have handed them another envelope to keep on bribing.
Are you clear yet, or do I need to use smaller words. LOL! (This insulting business is fun...)
Last I read Haliburton didn't have post war contract.
I am saying that I find nothing wrong with paying bribes in a place where bribes are an accepted way of doing business.
Like Washington, D.C.
So, no where did I say the firings were justified or unjustified.
It all depends on the meaning of the word “correctly”:
Did they fire the guys? Then Haliburton seems to have handled it correctly.
You don’t need to use any smaller words. I clearly understand that you see no need for ethical standards on businesses that deal with our government and others. You’ve made yourself perfectly clear.
For me, if Halliburton or any other company wants to do business with our government (especially on no-bid contracts) I would demand that behave ethically and in accordance with our laws and the laws of the country in which they are working on our behalf.
If they prefer to operate in the environment of lax ethical standards that you advocate, they should send money to Terry McAuliffe and wait on the sidelines until Hillary gets elected.
You have taken the high road. Good for you... It's a rarefied place... Enjoy it!
Now, you can sit back and congratulate yourself on being the master of both ethics and morals.
At least some executives in Halliburton have been bribing government officials.
I think this is unethical. You think it is perfectly acceptable.
I'm sorry you lost the debate, but accusing me of changing the subject is a pretty sad tactic to avoid admitting defeat.
I started keeping tabs/saving articles on B.S. the Demoncrats(I include the AP) continue to daily/weekly throw against the wall, waiting for something, ,anything, to make Republicans look bad,and I found it just takes up too much of my time do it anymore. D.C.'s name is irrelevant to the article.
And they got fired, as it should be.
That and I hope the firings went high up enough to catch all the guilty. Time will tell.
Imagine that, this happened after Cheney had left and, of course, he's to blame. Just like Enron, all the fraud occurs while Clinton is receiving his daily oval office spit shine, and the press pukes want to blame it on Bush. They may be able to put this over on the forty percent of the population who don't have or can't read a calendar, but it doesn't look like something that will stick.
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