Interesting Eurasianet article on the video clips of former Kazatomprom chief, Mukhtar Dzhakishev that somehow made their way onto Youtube a couple weeks back. (Check it out here)
The story adds a whole new dimension to the Dzhakishev saga. The Kazatomprom chief, it seems, was courting a Canadian company, Uranium One, to be the leader in building the Kazakh uranium industry and effectively block Russian entry into the Kazakh uranium sector, which Dzhakishev apparently thinks would impede progress.
Since the ouster of Dzhakishev, as the author notes, Russian spinoff company ARMZ has apparently made gains in the uranium sector, with all kinds of family connections making ARMZ’s gains a little shadier.
Furthermore, prosecutors in the Dzakhishev case appear to be avoiding all mention of his ties to former BTA bank manager Mukhtar Ablyazov. It appears someone finally realized that linking these two cases was actually hurting their cause and raising more eyebrows than it was discrediting Dzhakishev.
The moral of the story? The fight against corruption in Kazakhstan, is, at least when it comes to high-ranking officials, apparently much more of a political game than it is an attempt to root out corruption. Surprised?
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And why not throw in some good old fashioned kompromat for good measure:
http://www.rferl.org/content/Former_Kazakh_Security_Chief_In_Sex_Scandal/1912917.html
And Dzhakishev is suffering from heart problems. Yesterday apparently they had to call an ambulance for him at court but the trial continued while he was being treated by doctors.
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