U.S. watchdog for Afghanistan contracting resigns

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U.S. watchdog for Afghanistan contracting resigns
By Marisa Taylor | McClatchy Newspapers
Posted on Monday, January 10, 2011

WASHINGTON — The embattled top watchdog of U.S. contracting in Afghanistan announced Monday that he's resigning days after vowing to resist congressional demands to step down.

Arnold Fields, the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction, offered no explanation for his decision to leave. His resignation becomes official at the beginning of next month.

"I depart confident in the knowledge that SIGAR is positioned to provide essential support to the president's strategy," he said.

Fields' resignation leaves vacant a key post in the Obama administration's push for bringing greater accountability to U.S. contracting in Afghanistan.

McClatchy reported in November that over the past three years, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers construction projects in Afghanistan have failed, face serious delays or resulted in subpar work, costing American taxpayers hundreds of millions of dollars and hobbling U.S. efforts to stabilize the country.