Palestinian PM Salam Fayyad: Corrupt Supporter Of Palestinian Terrorism

Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad has been portrayed as the savior of a Palestinian state--he is the one who can guarantee a financially stable state under a competent and incorruptible state.

Dream on.

First of all, Salam Fayyad does not even legally hold the office of Prime Minister. As Steven J. Rosen points out, Salam Fayyad has no legal claim to the office of Prime Minister:

Hamas denies that Abbas has the authority to appoint Salam Fayyad as prime minister, because Abbas is not legally the president of Palestine under Article 65 and because Fayyad has not been empowered as prime minister by the Palestinian Legislative Council as required by Article 66 of the Basic Law. Neither his first appointment, on June 15, 2007, nor his reappointment on May 19, 2009, was confirmed by the PLC as required. Hamas, which controls the majority in the PLC, considers the legal prime minister of the Palestinian Authority to continue to be Ismail Haniyeh, a senior political leader of Hamas. Haniyeh was empowered by the PLC to be prime minister of Palestine in February 2006. Abbas dismissed Haniyeh from the office on June 14, 2007, after the Gaza coup, but Haniyeh counters that this decree violated articles 45, 78, and 83 and that he continues to exercise prime ministerial authority under Article 83. The PLC also continues to recognize Haniyeh's authority as prime minister. Here again, Hamas has the law on its side. [emphasis added]

On the issue of corruption, it appears Salam Fayyad has no more integrity than the rest of the Palestinian Authority:

Bassam Zakarneh, chairman of the Palestinian Authority Workers’ Union, launched a scathing and unprecedented attack on Prime Minister Salam Fayyad on Tuesday, accusing him of squandering public funds and refusing to take action against corrupt ministers.

...“We’ve discovered that some ministers and officials are receiving financial aid in their wives’ names,” Zakarneh told the paper. “Most of the aid authorized by Fayyad to the ministers and officials is in the context of support for the poor and families of martyrs. The money is paid to the wives [of the ministers and officials].”

Calling for an investigation into the allegations, Zakarneh pointed out that in one case the wife of a top official received more than $10,000 to purchase new contact lenses.

“Fayyad is continuing to give financial aid to all those who are close to him,” he charged. “He’s doing so under the pretext of social aid.”

He also called for the dismissal of three ministers who have allegedly been involved in corruption-related scandals.

“Fayyad is refusing to take action against the three ministers,” he said. “He’s concerned that his government would be accused of corruption.”

Zakarneh complained that only Fayyad and one or two officials in the Ministry of Finance had exclusive control over public funds and were not sharing information with the Palestinian Legislative Council or the Workers’ Union.

Aside from holding office illegally and being suspected of corruption--Salam Fayyad also supports the murder of Israelis by Palestinian terrorists. Palestinian Media Watch notes the following:

"Prime Minister, Salam Fayyad, opened his weekly radio address by sending greetings to the Palestinian mother in honor of Mothers' Day... 

The Prime Minister congratulated the Palestinian mothers for their leading and prominent role, alongside the men, and for their struggle to achieve full equal rights, out of thorough belief that a woman's right to equality is a natural, absolute and inalienable right. He said, 'On this occasion, I will not fail to mention with honor and admiration the resolve of the female prisoners, the fighters, and of all the prisoners of freedom who are imprisoned in the Israeli prisons, experiencing indescribable suffering. This requires that all of us intensify the effort to ensure their liberation from the occupation's chains and from the abuse of its [Israel's] executioners. I make special mention of all the women prisoners who are mothers: Iman Ghazawi, who has been imprisoned for ten years; Qahira Al-Sa'adi; Irena Sarahneh; Latifa Abu Dhiraa; Ibtisam Al-Issawi; Muntaha Al-Tawil; and Kifah Qatash.' He added, 'We do not forget the Palestinian mothers who stand as a barricade before the Israeli bulldozers in order to protect their land and their homes... I do not forget our righteous Shahid (Martyr) mothers, the mothers who are prisoners of freedom, and the mothers who have been injured or expelled.'"
[Al-Hayat Al-Jadida, March 24, 2011]

Who are these people?
o Qahira Al-Sa'adi and Irena Sarahneh are the women who drove suicide bombers to their attacks killing 5 Israelis.
o Iman Ghazawi placed a bomb in a bus station in Tel Aviv.
o Latifa Abu Zara'a smuggled a bomb into Israel for a suicide terror attack that was uncovered before it was implemented.

When you come right down to it, Salam Fayyad is really just one of the gang--a corrupt supporter of terrorist attacks against unarmed civilians who illegally occupies the office of Prime Minister.

But that is good enough for the West!

Technorati Tag: Salam Fayyad and Palestine and Terrorism.