A Tableau Of Incompetence, Greed And Disastrous Planning

"Unlike many American reconstruction officials, Mr. Bowen and his staff members routinely leave the security of Baghdad's fortified Green Zone to visit the project sites. His engineers open the doors on electrical panels and check that the wires are carrying electricity. His auditors read receipts and see if the figures add up. [snip] The office has issued 97 audit and inspection reports, many of them sharply critical, while starting 177 investigations that have led to at least five arrests and two convictions of Americans on fraud and other charges. Seventy to 80 of those investigations remain open. What emerges is a tableau of incompetence, greed and disastrous planning tempered by a slate of well-run projects that Mr. Bowen's reports are careful to highlight. [emphasis added - mfi]" Source: NYT 'The Watchdog - In a War Zone, Battling to Keep the Contractors Honest and on Track '