Reserve Bank of Australia's Saddam Hussein Dealings Exposed, Australia Greens Call for Probe

The Australian Greens are demanding a full judicial inquiry with the authority of the Royal Commission to investigate the alleged "dirty deals" of the Reserve Bank of Australia including its subsidiaries.

The Reserve Bank of Australia is currently under fire for using a front man to deal with the brother-in-law of Saddam Hussein. The front man was trying to close a deal involving the sale of plastic banknotes to the Iraqi government at the height of the sanctions imposed by the United Nations.

Adam Bandt, Australia Greens Deputy Leader, urged Prime Minister Tony Abbott and the Coalition government to form an inquiry that has the same powers as the one that investigated the scandal involving the Australian Wheat Board.

Mr Bandt said that most Australians might be shocked to know that the respected Reserve Bank has been using funds to finance deals with the Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein.

The stench the Reserve Bank of Australia and its subsidiaries is so strong that a full official investigation is needed to clean up the air.

Fairfax and ABC teamed up to investigate the Reserve Bank of Australia and its two subsidiaries, Note Printing Australia and Securency. According to both Fairfax and ABC, the Australian Securities and Investment Commission failed to investigate corruption allegations. The securities watchdog ignored the reported claims of Brian Good, a former National Bank of Australia executive and whistleblower.

Mr Bandt wanted to investigate the allegations against the Reserve Bank and its alleged Hussein dealings because if the allegations were true, Reserve Bank of Australia officials had indeed deceived the Parliament.

Mr Bandt found the thought to be disturbing. He vowed that when Parliament sessions resume, the Australia Greens will move to have Reserve Bank officials appear before Parliament and answer the allegations in front of a committee.

The Reserve Bank of Australia had sent out a statement earlier that said its visit to Iraq was well-documented by media in 2009. The statement also said that the 1998 visit to Iraq was ill-advised. The RBA also reiterated that there were no banknotes given to the Iraqis.