Berman Says Theft In Cuba Aid Programs Near $700K

Berman Says Theft In Cuba Aid Programs Near $700K

By John Bresnahan

Politico

July 22, 2008

House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Howard Berman (D-Calif.) says that alleged theft from two U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) programs for Cuba is estimated at roughly $700,000, but the California Democrat said he was not going to block all Cuba funding while the allegations are being investigated. USAID spends roughly $45 million annually on Cuba programs.

Berman's panel has been looking into the matter for several months, and the Miami Herald reported today that Berman had placed a hold on all $45 million "in part in response to a $500,000 embezzlement at the Center for a Free Cuba in Washington disclosed earlier this year, federal officials said."

At least $11,000 had been taken from "Grupo de Apoyo a la Democracia (Group in Support of Democracy), a Miami group criticized in the past for using federal funds to send Nintendo games to Cuba" by an employee of the organization, the Herald reported. That money has reportedly been repaid.

Berman, however, said that alleged theft is larger than previously thought. "In fact, Foreign Affairs Committee oversight efforts have so far uncovered two instances of theft from the program which apparently total about $700,000. These events are now under investigation," Berman said in a statement today.

But Berman will not block all $45 million in USAID funding for Cuba after the agency assured him that it was addressing the problem.

"Yesterday, I received assurances that USAID and the State Department are seized with the gravity of the problems in these programs and that they are actively working to correct the problems," Berman said. "Therefore, I have decided to release the hold placed on the $45 million in funding for Cuba democracy programs, except that funds will not be extended to those program participants that are under investigation. I look forward to working with USAID and the State Department to ensure that our Cuba democracy programs are properly administered."