“Maraadem” is the plural of “mardem”, a bird known as the Great Reed Warbler that can be easily caught due to its lack of caution. It has become a metaphor for submissiveness and calm.
About ten years ago, an accountant at a charitable organization embezzled approximately one and a half million dinars from its funds. When his scheme was uncovered, he fled to his home country, which does not extradite its citizens, even if they are fugitives.
What’s strange about this case is not just the amount stolen or that he stole for four years, but the fact that no one on the religiously devout board of directors or the organization’s auditors noticed a thing. I have previously written several articles about such incidents and how this incident could not have gone unnoticed for so long without the involvement, or at least the negligence, of internal parties.
I also highlighted that the organization’s board of directors was unlikely to make a serious effort to bring the perpetrator to justice.
Similar thefts have occurred both before and after this case, often following the same pattern and frequently involving individuals affiliated with religious or political groups. The most recent case involved another “mardem”, an organization whose accountant committed a money laundering offense amounting to half a million dinars between 2018 and 2022.
He invested the embezzled funds in establishing and operating a dermatology and plastic surgery clinic, generating over KD 413,000 in revenue. He manipulated the organization’s bank statements, falsified the names of staff members, including teachers, and altered official documents. Further, he was convicted of tampering with financial reports submitted to the board of directors and the association’s auditor.
Among his forgeries was his salary certificate, which he gradually inflated from KD 600 to KD 2,447. He fraudulently registered himself as an employee at both the organization’s health club and restaurant, enabling him to receive multiple salaries and bonuses each month. In addition, he successfully forged a contract between his own company and the organization, valued at KD 410,000. Through this forged contract, he was able to siphon funds directly from the organization’s bank accounts.
He also appointed himself as the manager of the organization’s printing press and teacher service center, allocating 3 percent of the total revenues from both entities to himself. In addition, he took part in the illegal practice of human medicine without obtaining the required licenses and committed several other serious violations, all without any of the organization’s board members, the so-called “Maraadem”, noticing the suspicious activities unfolding under their watch. For all this, the Court of Cassation sentenced him to ten years in prison and imposed a fine of one million dinars.
But the bird flew from the cage, never to return, as has happened in many similar cases! This raises several recurring questions:
Why do fraud cases continue to rise in organizations often run by those perceived as the most religiously committed?
On what basis does the government continue to grant these organizations annual financial aid of KD 100,000, despite their already substantial resources?
And why do calls for austerity seem to vanish when it comes to fully politicized organizations?
Why do fraud cases continue to rise in organizations often run by those perceived as the most religiously committed?
On what basis does the government continue to grant these organizations annual financial aid of KD 100,000, despite their already substantial resources?
And why do calls for austerity seem to vanish when it comes to fully politicized organizations?
By Ahmad alsarraf
email: [email protected]
email: [email protected]
