ALGIERS- The public prosecutor at the tribunal of Sidi M’hamed (Algiers) requested, on Thursday, a 10-year prison sentence and a fine of 3 million DA against the former Minister of Industry, Djamila Tamazirt, prosecuted for corruption.
Djamila Tamazirt is accused of squandering public funds, abuse of office for obtaining undue privileges and granting undue advantages when she was director of the Corso agri-food complex under the Eriad group between 2009 and 2015.
She is also being prosecuted for false declaration of assets, the investigations having revealed that she had 12 bank accounts and not 5 as she declared during the preliminary investigation.
The public prosecutor requested a sentence of 5 years in prison alongside a fine of 3 million DA against the brother-in-law (husband of the sister of the main defendant Tamazirt), Belmakki Nacer, with the issuance of an international arrest warrant against him.
The Prosecutor requested a sentence of 5 years in prison accompanied by a fine of 3 million DA against Hafidh Akhenach, the husband of the main defendant.
For the rest of the defendants prosecuted for mismanagement and abuse of office, sentences of 4 years in prison together with a fine of one (1) million DA were required against them.
The prosecution requested the confiscation of all movable assets and all funds from bank accounts seized on the orders of the investigating judge.
The judge of the economic and financial penal pole at the tribunal of Sidi M’hamed (Algiers) had heard the defendants, in particular on the circumstances of the conclusion of a partnership contract between the Amor Benamor Group and the flour mill of Corso (Erriad Alger ), as well as on the procedures related to the expertise on the equipment, the reasons for its dismantling as well as the determination of its financial value and the buyers.
The trial began with the hearing of the Minister, former Director General (DG) of the Corso agro-food complex (Boumerdes), on the circumstances of the conclusion of a partnership contract between the Amor Benamor Group and the Corso flour mill ( Erriad Alger), as well as on the procedures related to the expertise on the equipment, the reasons for its dismantling as well as the determination of its financial value and the buyers.
The accused Tamazirt, prosecuted for charges related to the squandering of public funds and the granting of undue privileges, affirmed that “the decision to engage in this partnership was taken in application of a correspondence from the Prime Minister of time (Abdelmalek Sellal)”, noting that she “had not interfered in the work of the commissions for the preparation of the expertise, in charge of the financial evaluation, the state of the equipment of the Corso unit and the definition of its financial value”.
The accused also denied “having interfered in the decision to dismantle the equipment”, in the sense that “the sale of this equipment was made for the benefit of the subsidiaries of the complex belonging to the public establishment of flour mills on all the national territory, the sale having been carried out on behalf of public establishments”, she said.
“Dating back to the 80s of the last century, the equipment was outdated and no longer met the new standards of the pasta production line,” she explained.
In addition, the judge heard the person in charge of the auction commission of the equipment of the pasta unit of Corso.
The accused indicated that “the sale of the equipment was carried out in the form of lots, a lot intended for the Sétif and Constantine flour mills, in execution of the instructions he had received from Tamazirt, and following which the procedures had were carried out in accordance with the law”. He further specified that “he did not attend all the lots of the sale for having retired”.
