THE WORLD’S MOST CORRUPT PLAYBOYS

Corrupt Son

In a country where the people should be among the wealthiest in the world, the vast majority of Equatorial Guinea is surviving on only a $1 a day.   Although it is the third largest producer of oil and gas in Sub-Saharan Africa, with a volume of over 350,000 barrels a day, many of its inhabitants are living in poverty in tin-roofed shacks with no clean water, no sanitation and a life expectancy of barely 50 years.  Yet millions of dollars are being spent daily on the grandiose construction of a new capital city, which is described by critics as a “spectacular vanity projectrising up in the middle of nowhere” and fulfilling the dream of a president who is purportedly paranoid of its citizens and obsessed with security.   Located in a very remote jungle setting, streets are modeled after the Avenue des Champs Elysees in Paris, and a 5-star hotel with 450 rooms, convention center and an adjacent 18-hole golf course are all part of the plan.  

Listed as a country with one of the worst human rights records in the world, torture, beatings, unexplained deaths and illegal detentions can occur on a daily basis in Equatorial Guinea.  Media are also banned by law from criticizing public figures, and public dissent of any kind is dangerous.  There is little public transportation, few newspapers and only 1% of government spending goes to health care.  Described as a one-party dictator and the longest serving leader in the world, Teodoro Obiang and his 30+ year regime are accused of rampant corruption and the diversion of millions of state funds into personal accounts.  

In 2011, Teodoro’s son, Teodorin Nguema Obiang, who is also Vice President and Head of Defense and Security, was investigated by the US Department of Justice for a lavish lifestyle that far exceeded his official salary of $100,000 per year.   Accused of diverting millions of state revenue into a personal account and money laundering of government foreign aid, he had assets worth over $70 Million seized… which included a $31 Million compound in Malibu, a Gulfstream jet, luxury cars, yachts and Michael Jackson memorabilia worth $2,000,000, including one white crystal ‘Bad Tour’ glove.  A notorius PLAYBOY who once spent over $1 Million on a weekend in South Africa and described as a “a rap music entrepreneur and bon vivant, fond of Lamborghinis and long trips to Hollywood and Rio de Janeiro”, Teodorin is also under investigation by French authorities for embezzlement, extortion and misappropriation of state funds. 

Since Obiang’s regime took over in 1979, US oil companies have poured billions of dollars into Equatorial Guinea, a nation that is also known to be one of the worst violators of forced sex and labor trafficking.  When questioned once as to why so much of the oil revenue was deposited into his personal account at the Riggs Bank in Washington, DC, Obiang defended this action by stating that he keeps total control in order to ‘avoid corruption’.  Described by Condoleeza Rice in 2006 as a “good friend” to the US, President Obiang has also stated that there is no poverty in Guinea but rather that the people “are used to living in a different way”.   In July 2003, the state-run radio referred to Obiang as “the Country’s God” who had “ALL POWER over men and things.”  They also told the public that their President was “in permanent contact” with the Almighty and can decide to KILL without anyone calling him to account and without going to HELL.”

Copyright © 2012 (Michelle Parsons, Getting Back on Your Path). All Rights Reserved.

 

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