- KABUL: Afghan President Hamid Karzai earns $525 a month, has less than $20,000 in the bank and owns no land or property, according to a declaration of his assets on Sunday by an anti-graft body.
The assets of Karzai, whose remuneration is five times the national average, were published by the High Office for Oversight and anti-Corruption Commission as part of a decree aimed at providing greater transparency among officials.
Although the Taleban insurgency remains the greatest threat to Afghanistan’s stability, graft at almost every level of society remains a major complaint of ordinary Afghans and anyone doing business with the country.
The list makes no mention of assets held by Karzai’s brothers and other relatives, several of whom run businesses at home and abroad.
It said Karzai, who is married to a stay-at-home physician and has a young son, had jewelry and other valuables worth $11,036.
The anti-graft body is registering the assets of at least 2,000 officials — including ministers, members of Parliament, senior military and police officers and provincial leaders — and will start publishing them this week.