Four Egyptian officials including the chairman of the state Food Industries Holding Company (FIHC) have been arrested on suspicion of taking bribes from commodities trading firms, state news agency MENA reported on Tuesday. The others are a supply ministry adviser responsible for coordination with parliament, a supply ministry spokesman and an official in the FIHC chairman’s office, according to MENA. The exact nature of the alleged bribes was not immediately clear and officials at the supply ministry were not immediately available for comment. It said the bribes exceeded 2 million Egyptian pounds ($112,000) and were given to officials in return for help in facilitating “purchase orders” and “payments of dues”, without providing further details. Egypt is the world’s largest importer of wheat and a major buyer of staples like corn and vegetable oils.

Source: Egypt Independent May 29, 2018 17:48 UTC