Egyptian presidential hopeful Amr Moussa on Monday denied an accusation that he was involved in financial violations committed during his term as Arab League secretary general.
In June, Egyptian lawyer Gamal Tag Eddin submitted a report to the attorney general that accused Moussa, along with Mohamed Farghaly, the president of the Arab Academy for Science, Technology, and Maritime Transport, of ignoring financial violations at the academy and seizing LE330 million in state funds.
In a statement on Monday, Moussa denied responsibility for the violations. He said he had no authority over the league's financial or administrative affairs.
He said the league does not interfere in the academy's affairs and that its economic and social councils have the sole authority to organize work in the academy.
Tag Eddin's complaint cited a report by the Administratve Control Authority, which exposed violations in a project implemented by the academy for Egypt's Transportation Ministry.
Some work carried out by the academy was given directly to companies without first seeking bids, according to the report, and some of the equipment used had been bought for inordinate prices.
The Public Prosecution is investigating the report. It said the Arab League had received several complaints about Farghaly’s alleged violations, but no legal action was taken against him.
Official documents published by Al-Masry Al-Youm in June alleged that Moussa was also involved in the natural gas deal between Egypt and Israel, which offered the latter prices lower than international rates.
Moussa served as Arab League chief from 2001 to May 2011. He also served as Egypt's foreign minister from 1991 to 2001.
