BISHKEK (TCA) — The Prosecutor-General’s Office in Kyrgyzstan said it has opened a criminal case against two members of the Kyrgyz parliament from Bir Bol faction — former Prime Minister Igor Chudinov and former Economy and Trade Minister Akylbek Japarov, on charges of corruption.
In a separate statement, the State Committee for National Security said that Chudinov, Japarov, and several other people were suspected of mishandling $2.9 million in state funds allocated for agricultural projects in 2009, RFE/RL’s Kyrgyz Service reported on May 30.
The criminal case was initiated on the fact of illegal allocation and misuse of a state budget loan in the amount of 200 million soms for Machine Testing Station JSC in 2009–2015, 24.kg news agency reports.
Both Chudinov and Japarov are currently lawmakers representing the Bir Bol (Be United) party, which is part of the ruling parliamentary coalition.
Chudinov was Kyrgyzstan’s prime minister in 2007-2009, under President Kurmanbek Bakiyev, who was ousted from power by popular protests in 2010 and fled to Belarus.
Japarov was economy and trade minister in that period, and served as first deputy prime minister in 2009-2010.
Lawmakers from two other parties in the ruling coalition are also facing corruption investigations, while opposition Ata-Meken (Fatherland) party leader Omurbek Tekebaev and other officials in his party have been charged with corruption in recent months.
