U.S. inspector general for Iraq under investigation

By Andrea Shalal-Esa

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Stuart Bowen, the U.S. special inspector general for Iraq reconstruction whose office has uncovered abuse of both Iraqi and U.S. funds, is under investigation himself, a White House spokeswoman said on Wednesday.

"Complaints against Mr. Bowen are being looked at by the integrity committee of the PCIE (President's Council on Integrity and Efficiency), said spokeswoman Emily Lawrimore.

She gave no details about the investigation or the nature of the complaints against Bowen, who heads the Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction, or SIGIR.

Bowen's office declined comment.

The council, created in 1992, is comprised of presidentially appointed inspectors general and headed by Clay Johnson, the deputy director for management of the White House Office of Management and Budget.

Johnson told Reuters he had no details on the nature of the allegations against Bowen, saying only they were filed by former and current employees.

"Right now there have been no findings," he said, adding the inspector general of the Social Security Administration had been appointed by the integrity committee to conduct the investigation.

"It has been going on for a long time," Johnson said.