Houston, We Still Have a Problem

Article Tools

Print

E-mail

Comments

RSS

Halliburton is one of the world's largest providers of products and services to the oil and gas industries. They are also one of the most delinquent companies in terms of corporate accountability. And, oh yeah, Vice President Cheney is the company's former CEO. This week Halliburton shareholders will gather in Houston to celebrate 2004 revenues of more than $20 billion. Not bad for a company under investigation by the FBI, SEC, and Justice Department among others.

The Corp Watch report details Halliburton offenses in 2004 -- years after the company's questionable business practices were initially outed. Protesters will be taking to the streets to object to a continuous blind-eye turned to this Eddie Haskell of the corporate world. Observers speculate there may be more people gathered in Houston to protest the litany of wrongdoings done by Halliburton than shareholders attending the annual meeting at the Four Seasons Hotel.

The company's ties to the Bush administration clearly have not been severed. Earlier this month, the US Army bestowed a $72.2 million bonus upon Halliburton subsidiary Kellogg, Brown, & Root (KBR) for logistics work in Iraq.

Over a third of Halliburton's 2004 revenues came from US government contracts in Iraq, millions of which almost certainly the result of still-disputed over-charging. Corporate crime notwithstanding, Halliburton continues to obtain government contracts in Iraq and raked in nearly twice in 2004 what it did in 2003.

Corporate accountability watch-dog groups, such as Corp Watch, and other independent agents continue to bring the facts of Halliburton's crimes to light. Protesters that will picket outside the Four Seasons in Houston have one simple request; that Halliburton be investigated and rightly punished for siphoning funds from Iraqis and US taxpayers.
-- Marca Bradt

RSS | Comments | E-mail | Print