Posted on 02/04/2005 12:20:02 PM PST by QQQQQ
UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - Iraq said it wanted its money back from the scandal-tainted U.N. oil-for-food program Friday as Secretary-General Kofi Annan vowed to get to the bottom of wrongdoing by U.N. staff.
"Huge sums of money which should have served the needs of the Iraqi people who were suffering at that time -- a lot of these resources were squandered and misspent," said Iraq's U.N. ambassador, Samir Sumaidaie.
Iraq, he said, should at minimum not have to pay for the independent probe set up by the United Nations from remaining oil-for-food funds. The inquiry panel has spent $30 million so far, with the approval of the Security Council.
A key report by Paul Volcker, the former U.S. Federal Reserve chairman appointed by Annan to probe the $67 billion program, found that the director of the plan, Benon Sevan, helped steer oil contracts to a relative of former U.N. Secretary-General Boutros Boutros-Ghali.
The report does not accuse any U.N. officials of getting bribes. But it says Sevan received $160,000 from an aunt in Cyrus, who has since died and had few resources.
"We are as determined as everyone to get to the bottom of this. We do not want this shadow to hang over the U.N.," Annan said as he arrived at headquarters.
Annan said U.N. officials would be disciplined and that if criminal acts were committed, diplomatic immunity would be lifted. He said he was consulting with lawyers on how to do this, as Sevan, who has denied he received as much as a penny, has retired and is on $1 a year retainer
Among other questionable deals in the report was one in which another U.N. official, Joseph Stephanides, colluded with a former British U.N. ambassador so that Lloyd's Register Inspection Ltd. could get a lucrative contract.
The report showed that if the humanitarian program were audited more thoroughly, it might have uncovered the cheating by Saddam Hussein's government. Most of his skimming, which some estimates put as high as $8 billion, was earned by illegal oil sales outside the program, some of them permitted by the council.
DUBIOUS CHOICES
Investigators questioned Boutros-Ghali for choosing the Banque Nationale de Paris, now known as BNP-Paribas, to handle the program's account. He did so after council members asked him to select a bank but was criticized for asking Iraq its preference.
He was in office in 1996 when the program was negotiated and the Volcker report alleged that Stephanides interfered in the awarding of contracts. But there are no allegations Boutros-Ghali deliberately undermined the program.
The program began in December 1996 and ended in November 2003, after the United States overthrew Saddam Hussein. Iraq was allowed to sell oil to buyers of its choosing and contract for food, medicine and other necessities to ease hardships caused by U.N. sanctions, imposed in mid-1990.
Volcker said his 240-page report was preliminary and that the final one would be produced in June. He said he may have another interim report to deal with the alleged role of Annan's son, who had worked in West Africa for Cotecna, another Swiss company that replaced Lloyd's in 1998 to inspect goods.
The Iraqi ambassador said the United Nations received $1.14 billion to administer the program and wanted to see how much actually reached its destination or was squandered by outside contractors working for the world body.
"The question arises whether the secretariat is subject to its own political culture, which tends to subvert the will of the Security Council," said Sumaidaie. "This is serious."
But he avoided blaming the Security Council, which had to approve contracts and whose key members were deadlocked in dealing with any improprieties on Iraq.
The U.S. Congress has initiated several investigations as has the U.S. Attorney's office.
Sen. Richard G. Lugar, the Republican chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee, said that "part of the blame for the current imbroglio lies with the U.N." but that one had to recognize that council members, including the United States "must also answer questions as to why they, too, did not pay greater scrutiny to this program."
But U.S. Rep. Henry Hyde, an Illinois Republican, said the Volcker report reinforced evidence of U.N. lapses in overseeing the program and "even the most rudimentary standards of accountability."
They should start by searching Annan's office.
Good luck, Iraq.
Look at Annan's and his son's offshore bank accounts.
It is nice isn't it? It's amazing how different the reaction depending on who is asking the questions. Now that the questions are coming from a newly elected Iraqi government, The UN cannot hide or dodge the issue.
Iraq vs. the U.N. This is an easier pick than New England vs. Philadelphia. GO, FREE IRAQIS! KICK THE U.N.'s butt!
I thought at first this was from Scrappleface, because I never dreamed the headline could be true. But good for them. If it was just the U.S. going after the $, we'd get blown off. But if Iraq goes after the U.N., maybe the world will take notice and hold those crooks at the U.N. accountable.
Sounds like a fair demand.
Time for an arrest of Sevan, at the very least.
Iraq should sue the U.N. in the International Crimial Court!
Didn't Iraq's new government also tell the French they were not welcome?
Perhaps the Iraqis knew all along what was going on with the food-for-oil program / scandal. With Saddam gone they may have some powerful evidence against UN and other participants in the scam.
Please let all of that come out during the war crimes trials - we might see some big named Euroweenies heading for the Sudan.
This should be fun to watch. U.S. out of the U.N. now.
AND Chirac's; AND Schroeder's; AND Putin's; AND maybe Peanutman Carter's and the Clintons'(both of them).
They can check my office any time. If they happen to find a few billion dollars just lying around, I'd be happier than a kid in a toy store.
I just wish I had a few billion dollars sitting around. Hold on, I didn't check behind the paintings... Drats, nothing!
We should toss the entire U.N. staff into a cell, toss away the key, and burn the U.N. charter. Can we do that? Is it legal to burn the U.N. flag? ;-)
The movement is growing people. If you have not already done so, please sign the petition to get the UN out of the USA. Let's help relocate these anti-American thugs to some 3rd world shithole where they belong.
http://moveamericaforward.org/?Page=Petition
Kofi has offered to write a personal check for the full amount!
I like the idea of the Iraqi government suing the UN in the ICC.
I read in one place that Kofi's son finally admitted that he was getting kick backs. Never saw or have heard of it again. Is there any updates on that?
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.