11 ministry officials arrested for stealing food subsidy cards

CAIRO – 1 May 2018: Eleven officials in the office of the Ministry of Supply in Qalyubia governorate were arrested on Tuesday over stealing around 4,000 food subsidy cards.

The investigations revealed that the defendants did not hand the cards to citizens, even though they were issued six months ago.

Assistant Minister of Interior Anwar Saed said, “This crime is a takeover of government subsidy funds to low-income people through these cards, which negatively affects the national economy of the country.”

On August 3, 2017, the head of Giza's supply office was arrested over siphoning off LE 1 million ($56,394) by issuing ration cards for people who do not deserve subsidies, according to MENA.

Investigations uncovered that the official obtained bribes to help people obtain ration cards who do not deserve the subsidy.

“The government is now working to expand the subsidies system to ensure it reaches the right beneficiaries, as well as widening the social safety nets,” Minister of Supply Ali Moselhy said in a statement.

In late June, President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi announced the government will increase the subsidies on ration cards from LE 21 to LE 50 per individual, as part of a series of decisions that target boosting the social safety net.

The decision would raise allocations of food subsidies in the budget for the 2017/18 fiscal year to LE 85 billion from LE 47 billion in the 2016/17 fiscal year.