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Inspectors of U.S. Afghanistan Spending Condemned by Inspectors of Inspectors
Wednesday, July 21, 2010

Inspector General Arnie Fields

The special watchdog created by the federal government to oversee spending in Afghanistan is doing a lousy job, according to other government watchdogs.

At issue is the work of The Office of the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR), which has come under criticism from Congress for its weak audits of the war’s spending. The head of SIGAR, Arnie Fields, invited the Council of Inspectors General on Integrity and Efficiency (CIGIE), which serves as an oversight board of all inspectors general in the U.S. government, to conduct a review of his operation.

In its report CIGIE stated: “In sum and substance, there were nearly no official investigative policies and procedures in place prior to March 2010 and, therefore, no investigative activities in compliance therewith.” Those policies that did exist were apparently copied from the Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction.

Field’s office also was knocked for not properly training his investigators and not providing clear quality standards for investigations.

The report could lead to SIGAR being stripped of its investigative powers by Attorney General Eric Holder. Members of Congress are calling for Fields to be fired.

-Noel Brinkerhoff

New Report Rips Oversight of Afghan War (by Josh Rogin, Foreign Policy)

Report on the Quality Assessment Review of the Investigative Operation of the Office of Special Inspector General for the Afghanistan Reconstruction (Offices of Inspector General of Tennessee Valley Authority, Department of Defense, State Department, Department of Interior, Department of Agriculture and Agency for International Development) (pdf)

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