Algerian Waters Company (A.D.E) embroiled in a corruption scandal with Spaniards

A new corruption scandal has broken out again involving Algerian officials and Spanish politicians.This time it is the Spanish Company (Elecnor) and Algerian waters (A.D.E) Company which are at the heart of the scandal.

Some Algerian officials and their family members are said to have benefited from largesse in kind, money and medical expenses in Paris from two politicians from the Spanish People’s Party, including an MP and the Spanish ambassador in India who served as go-betweens  to facilitate the granting of a huge sea water desalination project at Souk Ethalatha in the western province of Tlemcen in 2011 for a financial package of 250 million Euros.

This unveiled corruption case has become a major scandal in the Spanish political circles, especially as the right-wing People’s Party is currently in power.

This bribery affair was splashed on the front page of the first Spanish daily “El Mundo” and relayed by the Anti-Corruption Court, which decided to open an in-depth investigation.

In a mitigated reaction, Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy has sought to play down the affair by saying that it is a common practice, while the Socialist Party “PSOE” demanded the resignation of the Ambassador and the exclusion of the MP involved.

Furthermore, Spanish radio “Cadena Ser” also revealed another corruption scandal involving always the two Spaniards at issue who are suspected of receiving bribes estimated at 920,000 Euros in the achievement of the tramway project in the city of Ouargla in southern Algeria.