RAMALLAH (Ma’an) -- Palestinian Authority minister of economy Hassan Abu Libdeh has criticized reports linking names from his ministry with allegations of corruption.

Abu Libdeh told Ma'an Thursday that he is ready to appear before an anti-corruption committee and answer any questions put forward regarding corruption charges, vowing to defend the work of his ministry.

“I am ready to appear before anti-corruption committee everyday and not only in this issue but on any other issue for the forty years I have spent at public service,” he said.

“The right of questioning and accountability is sacred in the democratic, civilized and modern societies which we are always working to be at their level.”

“Subjecting any official to questioning is something normal, it’s part of the traditions of democratic work.

“But what is unnatural is to issue harsh verdicts in advance,” he noted.

All members of the public sector should be questioned to ensure transparency because their wages come from the taxpayer, he added.

Abu Libdeh praised the anti-corruption committee and its integrity.