Indonesia warns donors to avert graft

Indonesia's welfare minister has asked that billions of dollars of tsunami aid be channeled directly to reconstruction projects to bypass corrupt officials.

Senior Welfare Minister Alwi Shihab, who is in charge of disaster relief, said the government's integrity and reputation were on the line in rebuilding Aceh province, which was devastated in the Dec. 26 tsunami.

The country estimates reconstruction will cost $4 billion over five years.

The United Nations has said it wants to let the government manage the country's reconstruction, but Shihab said Indonesia was not ready to do the job alone, ChannelNewsAsia reported Thursday.

He expressed hope foreign donors would provide representatives to oversee the projects they are funding.

The watchdog organization Transparency International has named Indonesia one of the world's most corrupt countries.

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono won election last October with pledges to do away with corruption and bribery, but his government has not yet achieved significant results.

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