Crime of abuse of official influence

Abstract

In the public facility and abuses the public service. This crime is represented by the employee exploiting the independence and functional influence. It is one of the most dangerous forms of administrative and financial corruption that threatens the trust of the employee or the person entrusted with a public service, using their real or alleged influence to achieve an illegitimate interest for themselves or others, whether material or moral, to perform or refrain from performing an act related to their job, or to breach their job duties.

The research aims to study the crime of exploiting functional influence in light of the provisions of the Iraqi Penal Code No. 111 of 1969, as amended, and related laws. The research aims to study the three elements of the crime in terms of the material, moral, and borrowed elements. The research also clarifies the entities that face this.

The research addressed the legal concept of the crime of exploiting official influence and showed that there is a disparity in how this crime is dealt with in legislation, and that many legal texts need to be developed and changed in this regard to keep pace with the development in the methods of committing this crime, whether in terms of legislation or in terms of the mechanisms for detecting and holding accountable for it. Despite the large number of bodies that are responsible for monitoring the state’s agencies and institutions, this crime is still active and in a large and clear manner, reaching the point of being public, but without direct accountability.

Crime and the imperative of research indicate that combating the crime of abuse of official influence in Iraq requires institutional and legislative reform that clearly defines legal texts and specifies illegal conduct, along with increasing integrity and transparency in administration.