UN chief responds to allegations of power grab

(Xinhua)

Updated: 2010-07-23 09:49

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UNITED NATIONS - UN Secretary-general Ban Ki- Moon spoke with senior advisors on Thursday about a report filed by outgoing UN official Inga-Britt Ahlenius that accused him of trying to exert control over her office, his spokesperson, Martin Nesirky, told reporters here.

Until July 16, Ahlenius served as UN under-secretary-general of the office of international oversight services (OIOS). The office was founded in 1994 to conduct internal audits and investigate corruption within the UN organization.

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"Rather than supporting the internal oversight which is the sign of strong leadership and good governance, you have strived to control it which is to undermine its position," Ahlenius wrote to Ban in her 50-page end-of-assignment report, which was subsequently leaked to The Washington Post and posted in a briefer form on foreignpolicy.com.

In her report, Alhenius claimed that the UN Secretariat is " drifting into irrelevance" on many global issues due to Ban's inadequate leadership. She alleged that the UN chief undermines the independence of his under-secretaries by controlling the hiring processes of their staffs and that he tried to create a new internal investigative unit to strip the OIOS of power.

Ban's office has responded to these attacks by asserting that there are many factual errors in Ahlenius' report, and stating that they will launch an internal review process in response.

"The secretary-general said where there is room for improvement we will take action, where there are inaccuracies, and there are significant inaccuracies, we will set the record straight," Nesirky told reporters here on Thursday.

Alhenius' report voiced concern that Ban blocked her attempts to appoint Robert Appleton as the director of the OIOS investigations division because she apparently failed to produce any female candidates on her original shortlist for the job.

Nesirky explained that at "every UN department and agency he ( Ban) insists that there be at least three candidates for the post, at least one of whom should be a woman. And that is the only way to ensure that the workforce culture of the United Nations reflects the full diversity, gender balance, and strength of our modern world."

Vijay Nambiar, chef de cabinet for Ban, issued a letter of rebuttal to Alhenius' accusations, including the claim that Ban had tried to create a second investigative unit to overpower the OIOS.

The rebuttal, also posted on foreignpolicy.com, explained that "the secretary-general has been working internally with relevant departments, in close consultation with the OIOS, to look at possible improvements in the investigative function beyond OIOS, in areas not within its purview."

Nambiar stressed that the process of establishing a new group has the full support of the OIOS, and that the new entity must be approved by member states of the UN before it can be founded.

According to Nesirky, Ban told senior advisors that "he'll always welcome constructive criticism, but as public servants there are rules and procedures, and in this case a trust and a bond had been broken."