Your editorial “The UN inquiries” rightly notes that the administrators of the Iraqi Oil-for-Food Program should have seen and stopped the kickbacks (OGJ, Jan. 24, p. 19). My experience, setting up budget control on a variety of oil related projects for UN Agencies, is that the kickbacks are seen and are reported. It is the UN management which actively ignores criticising their client countries. In every one there was blatant corruption involving the local government and contractors. The UN agencie’s permanent staff ignored formal reports detailing the misuse of funds. Funds supposedly directed to the poorest people in the world. One of the biggest abusers is currently in the news-Equatorial Guinea-no news to the World Bank who has acquiesced at open bribery since 1985.
One of the fundamental problems is nepotism. The latest alleged dishonesty concerns the son of the Secretary General (Kojo Annan) while working for a UN contractor (Cotecna). Ever since the founding of the UN and its offspring agencies, top directors have been political appointees. While the staff appear to have been chosen by ability there are national quotas with a bias toward the Third World. This would appear quite sensible as the major objective of these organisations is to develop the poorer countries. However due to the corrupt politics existing in most undeveloped countries the only applicants allowed are those acceptable to their government, chosen to pay off past debts or to buy future loyalty. The result is a structure not there to improve the lot of others but to maintain their lot of tax free dollar salaries, tax free shopping, and diplomatic immunity. Reports on corruption are systematically suppressed so as not to derail the gravy train. Street-wise UN contractors know this and ensure they have well-connected people on their staff.
Other International Organisations such as the Islamic, Asian, and European Development Banks have been structured on similar weak foundations and also suffer corruption.
The “ménage a trios” of Kojo/Kofi/Cotecna brings back memories of a project funded by a Development Bank when they asked and paid for the help of UN Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO). The bank’s project director specified the technical expert to be brought in under the UN banner. This technician then recommended the contractor to use and subsequently sanctioned their stage payments. These were authorised by the project director and paid. When UNIDO was advised that the project director and technical expert were undeclared owners of the contracting company nothing was done. I expect the same outcome over this latest scandal.
Mike Lillico
Mallorca, Spain
