If only

Wheat exporter AWB knew it was providing hundreds of millions of dollars in kickbacks and deceived the UN about the payments that helped prop up Saddam Hussein's murderous Iraqi regime, an inquiry has heard.

In a damning opening statement, the Commission of Inquiry into the monopoly wheat marketer's deals under the corruption-ridden United Nations oil-for-food program has questioned whether AWB told the truth in claiming it was duped by an elaborate scheme of kickbacks set up by the despot.

Counsel assisting the inquiry, John Agius, SC, said evidence would show that AWB's most senior executives knew they had paid close to $300 million for non-existent trucking services that were funnelled directly to Saddam's government.

Evidence would also be presented that AWB "was prepared to deceive the UN as to the true nature of its contractual arrangement with the IGB [Iraq Grain Board]", Mr Agius said.

AWB, the former Australian Wheat Board which is now a listed company, has consistently denied that it knew the hefty trucking fees paid to a Jordanian company, Alia, were ending up in the dictator's pocket.

Mr Agius rejected AWB's position.

"Evidence will be called to the effect that AWB always knew that Alia was a conduit for the payment of money to Iraq," he told the inquiry.

"These matters were always known to AWB to be in breach of the UN sanctions [imposed on Iraq].

"These matters were known at high levels within AWB."

SMH

Not that you kids care but what irony. A market monopoly aided and abetted by a government clamiming a commitment to free markets in the sigle biggest act of bribery to prop up a regime the same government claimed to oppose. Of course John Howard knew nothing, nothing definately much less than his somnambulist foreign minister or the suddenly and perhaps precipitously departed defence minister. Something tells me that Lord Downer of Baghdad and Mark "Uncle Sam sold me some magic beans" Vaile will definately be 'shuffled' by our Saddam loving PM. I hope in vain but oh to see the Liberal party hoist by its own petard, collapse in scandal brought on by their own hubris. Of course Kim Beazley is nowhere to be found. The man couldn't win an arse kicking contest against a one legged man. And... hey, get off my lawn!