Posted on 09/08/2005 4:40:54 PM PDT by Aussie Dasher
UNITED Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan has vowed to pursue urgent reform of the world body after the long-awaited report into corruption and abuses in Iraq's oil-for-food program.
A UN-appointed panel heavily criticised Mr Annan's management of the aid operation, saying he and the Security Council failed to curb abuses of the program by UN staff, contractors and Saddam Hussein.
Mr Annan yesterday accepted responsibility for the corruption as investigators presented a massive report on the problems after 16 months of work.
But he quickly sought to use the panel's call for sweeping change as a catalyst for his own proposals to reform the world body. These include policy changes in development, security and UN management.
While the report stopped short of calling for Mr Annan's resignation, diplomats say the real test of whether the Secretary-General has salvaged his credibility may come when world leaders gather at the United Nations to consider broad institutional and policy changes that he hopes will be his legacy.
"He has to show that he can still be the leader of reform," said one UN official. "If not, then he might as well get out of the way."
In a dramatic and forthright presentation of the committee's report to the Security Council, the panel's chairman, former US Federal Reserve chairman Paul Volcker, said investigators had been asked to look for maladministration or corruption in the oil-for-food program.
"Unhappily, we found both," he said.
The performance of Mr Annan and his deputy, Louise Frechette, "fell short of the standards that the United Nations organisation should strive to maintain", Mr Volcker said.
The report's investigators said the oil-for-food program was so poorly managed that Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein was able to rake in $US1.7 billion ($A2.2 billion) in kickbacks from participating companies and $US11 billion in oil-smuggling profits.
Among the most volatile allegations probed by Mr Volcker were suspicions that Mr Annan had steered lucrative Iraqi oil contracts to a Swiss company, Cotecna, that had put his son on its payroll.
Responding to the Security Council, Mr Annan said he accepted the personal criticism and deeply regretted not looking deeper into reports that his son was exploiting UN connections.
"The findings in today's report must be deeply embarrassing to all of us. The inquiry committee has ripped away the curtain and shone a harsh light into the most unsightly corners of the organisation," he said.
In a statement that shared the blame and yet transformed Mr Volcker's call for change to support his own reform package, Mr Annan said: "None of us — member states, secretariat, agencies, funds or programs — can be proud of what it has found. Who among us can now claim that UN management is not a problem, or is not in need of reform?"
Mr Annan's credibility has been damaged by months of revelations about corruption related to the program, but yesterday he dismissed calls for his resignation.
"I don't anticipate anyone to resign. We are carrying on with our work," he said.
The Secretary-General had proposed a package of policy changes in development, security and the UN's management that he hoped would restore the world body's relevance.
But just a week before more than 175 world leaders are to endorse the reforms, the package is stalled in negotiations, with a group of developing countries and others resisting proposals pushed largely by the US.
"If we don't have an agreement by Friday, then you can call it a crisis," said Dutch ambassador Dirk Jan van der Berg.
US ambassador John Bolton agreed with Mr Annan that the Volcker report underlined the urgency of reform.
"We need to reform the UN in a manner that will prevent another oil-for-food scandal. The credibility of the UN depends on it," he said.
Here's a suggestion Kofi. Resign. Show that you are a real man and can face your responsibility as the overseer of this cesspool you are responsible even if you did not have your hand in the kitty.
I'm still waiting for the little blue helmets to show up in Katrina land, and wave their magic wand, making everything fine in liberal media fantasyland.
So he's finally admitting he had sex with the Oil for Food program? Or is he debating the meaning of the word "is"?
Hey, Mrs. Clinton....here's an investigation for you!
So much to steal, so little time!
In other news, the father of lies promised to quit lying....
He is talking like this because he got caught with his hand in the cookie jar and does not want any punishment.
Beyond words.
Help me out here...the demwits say a bipartisan commitee can't be trusted to investigate the Chain of Demand, uh, Command re: Katrina/NOLA, but not a peep from them when Koffi says "I'll investigate myself and get back to you."
Well, maybe he's going to commit a public seppuku. That would start cleaning the things up a little.
bttt
"He is talking like this because he got caught with his hand in the cookie jar and does not want any punishment."
Oh you don't have to worry about Kofi being punished, Volker did a fine job of mitigating Kofi's part in all this.
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