by David Phinney
Oct. 26, 2007 — Contracts won by Baghdad embassy builder First Kuwaiti General Trading and Contracting are “under review,” Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice revealed during a congressional hearing Thursday.
Rice was answering questions from Rep. Tom Davis, R-Va., about why the State Department awarded the Baghdad contract to First Kuwaiti in 2005 despite allegations that the company and its founder, Lebanese businessman Wadih al Absi, engaged in a $200,000 kickback scheme on unrelated Army contracts in Iraq.
Following up on the admission, McClatchy reporter Warren P. Strobel confirmed the brief comment with other U.S. officials who said the State Department is “looking at three other subcontracts given to First Kuwaiti General Trading and Contracting Co. to build embassies and consulates in Saudi Arabia, Indonesia and the African country of Gabon.”
Apparently, the company’s future business depends on how quickly it resolves the problems in Baghdad, “where the massive $740-million embassy complex is behind schedule due to a series of fire safety, electrical and other flaws.”
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