NZ firm's CEO linked to Australia oil-for-food scandal

The chief executive of kiwifruit exporter Zespri has been named as an alleged key player in the scandal linking the Australian Wheat Board and the oil-for food-programme in Iraq.

An Australian inquiry into the issue has been told that Tim Goodacre, who was chief executive of the AWB until 2002, had intimate knowledge of illegal payments channelled to Iraq, Radio New Zealand reported today.

The Australian Wheat Board has been accused of paying A$300 million ($331 million) in kickbacks to the former Iraqi government under the United Nations oil-for-food programme.

The AWB's former international trading manager, Mark Emons, alleged that Mr Goodacre, now chief executive of bay of Plenty-based Zespri, was well aware of the payments and was included in all correspondence related to them.

He told the inquiry that Mr Goodacre agreed to a clause into employees' exit contracts, absolving them of responsibility for the payments to Iraq.

Mr Emons said the payments were channelled through a Jordanian trucking company, Alia, as fictitious transport costs.

But some reports of the scandal have noted that payment of "facilitation fees" -- also known as "grease" -- to foreign officials might not have been illegal in some cases. It was only in 1999 that there was a change to the Australian Criminal Code making it an offence to bribe foreign officials.

The Australian Taxation Office even made such payments tax deductible in some circumstances.

Mr Goodacre, 51, took on the role of Zespri chief executive in January 2003.

At the time he said he had spent 12 years with AWB in a variety of executive management roles.

Mr Goodacre's lawyer, Peter Crombie, said his client had just flown in from Europe, and had not yet been briefed on the full extent of the allegations.

Mr Crombie said the inquiry's prosecuting lawyers had asked Mr Goodacre to meet with them, but he had asked for more information first regarding the allegations.

Zespri's chairman, Craig Greenlees told National Radio he had no concerns about Mr Goodacre's role with Zespri.

- NZPA