World Leaders Deny Wrongdoing after Pandora Papers Leaks

Many leaders across the world denied any wrongdoing after featuring in a big leak of financial documents from offshore companies. Dubbed the Pandora Documents, the twelve million files establish the biggest such leak in history. King Abdullah II bin Al-Hussein and Russian President Vladimir Putin are among thirty-five former, and current leaders linked to the files.

Both leaders issued statements denying any wrongdoing. However, the royal palace of Jordan said it was not unusual nor improper that the king owned property abroad. Leaked papers reveal that the leader secretly spent over $100 million (£70 million) on property empire in the United Kingdom and the United States since taking power in 1999.

Meanwhile, Dmitry Peskov, the spokesman of the Kremlin, questioned the reliability of the unconfirmed information after it shared detailed hidden wealth associated with President Putin and his closed ones. He told reporters that it is unclear what information is and what it is about at the moment. The International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) gets the information in Washington DC. The independent global network of 280 investigative journalists has worked with over one hundred and forty media organizations on its biggest ever international investigation.

Some Other World Leaders Linked with the Papers Leak

The Guardian and BBC Panorama led the investigation in the United Kingdom. Here below are some other leaders linked to the leak:

• Sebastián Piñera, the President Chile accused of selling an iron and copper mine in an environmentally sensitive area to childhood friends, as it shared with details in the El Pais newspaper of Spain
• Uhuru Kenyatta, the President of Kenya, along with his six family members, have links with thirteen offshore companies
• Ilham Aliyev, the President of Azerbaijan s family and close allies, allegedly involved secretly in property deals in the United Kingdom, having worth over four hundred million pounds (£400 million).
• Andrej Babis, the Prime Minister of Czech allegedly failed to declare an offshore investment firm that used to acquire two villas for twelve million pounds (£12 million) in the south of France

Czech prime minister tweeted that the allegations are an effort to influence upcoming elections scheduled for this week. They want to hurt his reputation because there is no case; they can pull on him while he is in politics. He denied doing anything illegal or wrong. On the other hand, Kenyatta said the probe would go a long way in enhancing the financial honesty and transparency that they require in Lenya and across the world. However, he vowed to respond comprehensively to the paper leak once he returned from a state visit abroad.

The Pandora Documents show no evidence that the Kenyatta family hid or stole state assets in their offshore companies. Likewise, Piñera’s office stated that the president denied any involvement in or had any information on the deal of the Dominga mining project. However, according to the Guardian, Azerbaijan’s President Aliyev and his family didn’t respond or comment in an effort to contact them.

Pakistan’s Prime Minister Vowed to Investigate

Imran Khan, the Prime Minister of Pakistan, vowed to investigate Pakistani citizens associated with the Pandora Papers. Several Pakistanis, including some members of Khan’s cabinet, were named in the paper leak. Furthermore, the Pandora Documents is a leak of around twelve million documents and files exposing the secret wealth and illegal dealings of global leaders, billionaires, and politicians.

The ICIJ obtained the statistics in Washington DC, which led to one of the largest investigations of the world. Over six hundred journalists from one hundred and seventeen nations looked at the hidden wealth of some of the most powerful and prominent individuals on the Earth.

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