Oil-for-food probe: UN needs overhaul to stop fraud
UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - The United Nations urgently needs stronger leadership and wide-ranging reforms to prevent the "illicit, unethical and corrupt behavior" uncovered in the $64 billion oil-for-food program for Iraq, a year-long inquiry found.
The investigation by the Independent Inquiry Committee, headed by Paul Volcker, the former U.S. Federal Reserve chairman, to be released on Wednesday, says the United Nations was ill-equipped to handle a program of that magnitude "or even programs of a lesser scope."
"An adequate framework of controls and auditing was absent," said the report's introduction, obtained by Reuters. "There were, in fact, instances of corruption among senior staff as well as in the field."
"At stake is the U.N. ability to respond promptly and effectively to the responsibilities thrust upon it by the realities of a turbulent and often violent world," said the report. "It is precisely those qualities that too often were absent in the administration of the oil-for-food program."
The full report will disclose "serious instances of illicit, unethical and corrupt behavior, but the administrative difficulties are not only, or even primarily, a case of personal malfeasance," the introduction says.
The report is expected to run to nearly 1,000 pages and is an analysis of the U.N.-established investigation of the now-defunct program that allowed Saddam Hussein's government to sell oil and buy food, medicine and other goods to offset the impact of sanctions on ordinary Iraqis.
The U.N. trade sanctions were imposed in mid-1990 after Baghdad's troops invaded Kuwait. The oil-for-food program began in December 1996 and ended in 2003, a few months after the U.S.-led invasion toppled Saddam.
But the report's timing could not be worse as it comes out days before U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan presides over the largest world summit in history on September 14-16. One proposal would give the secretary-general more power to move around staff, investigate wrongdoings and hire outside auditors.
Despite its criticisms, the report said the program, which provided a lifeline for some 90 percent of Iraq's 26 million people, had some "real accomplishments."
"They were achieved despite uncertain, wavering direction from the Security Council, pressures from competing political forces in Iraq and endemic corruption on the ground," the Volcker committee report says.
The report is expected to blame every U.N. organ involved in the program -- the 15-member Security Council, meant to supervise it, and U.N. relief agencies conducting turf wars.
But the report is not expected to come up with any further information against Annan personally, although it will probably fault his son Kojo, for using his father's name for personal profit in purchasing a Mercedes under diplomatic cover.
The younger Annan worked for the Swiss firm Cotecna, which received a lucrative contract to inspect goods and there is no evidence so far the secretary-general influenced the contract bidding. But the full report is expected to give details about how much Annan knew about Cotecna's quest for the contract.
Without giving any details on Annan's behavior, the report's forward said no secretary-general had ever been chosen for his managerial or administrative skills and did not have a structure that would produce strong executive oversight.
Annan, the report said, was viewed as the chief diplomatic and political agent of the United Nations and was "widely respected for precisely those qualities."
"In these turbulent times those responsibilities tend to be all consuming," the Volcker inquiry said. "The record amply reflects consequent administrative failings."
Nevertheless the report said that its main conclusions were unambiguous. The world body urgently required "stronger executive leadership, thorough going administrative reform and more reliable controls and auditing."
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