NEW YORK - Investigators of the U.N. oil-for-food program in Iraq said Tuesday there was not enough evidence to show that Secretary-General Kofi Annan knew of a contract bid by his son's Swiss employer. However, they criticized the U.N. chief for not properly investigating possible conflicts of interest in the matter.Kojo, tell the nice man you're sorry. C'mon tell him...
Asked if he was planning to step down in a response to the program, Annan replied, "Hell, no."
He's going to hunt for the real corruptors. Just like OJ.
The report released Tuesday also accused the company, Cotecna Inspection S.A., and Annan's son, Kojo, of trying to conceal their relationship after the contract was awarded. It also faulted Kofi Annan for conducting a one-day investigation into the matter, saying it should have been a more rigorous, independent probe.
I'm surprised it lasted even one day.
The report's conclusion was not the clear vindication that the secretary-general had wanted, though the investigation led by former U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Paul Volcker did not accuse the U.N. chief of corruption or any other wrongdoing.
While Kofi Annan said he accepted that criticism, he was happy with the report's findings he committed no wrongdoing.
We could only prove that he was an inept, incompetent fool who shouldn't be running a phone booth, nevermind the UN. Also notice that Kofi appears very happy about that.
"After so many distressing and untrue allegations have been made against me, this exoneration by the independent inquiry obviously comes as a great relief," he said.
Exonerated, I tell ya! Like OJ. I can see his epitath now. "Kofi Annan: They could never prove it."
At a press conference after the report was released, Volcker said the investigation found no evidence that Kofi Annan improperly influenced the process by which Cotecna was selected for an inspection contract under the oil-for-food program. "Our investigation has disclosed several instances in which he might, or could have become aware, of Cotecna's participation in the bidding process," Volcker said. "However, there is neither convincing testimony to that effect nor any documentary evidence. "Taking all of this into account, the committee has not found the evidence is reasonably sufficient to show that the secretary-general knew that Cotecna had participated in the bidding process in 1998," Volcker said.
I know NOTHING! NOTHING!
Kojo Annan worked for Cotecna in West Africa from 1995 to December 1997, and then was a consultant for the firm until the end of 1998 — when it won the oil-for-food contract. He remained on the Cotecna payroll until 2004 on a contract to prevent him from working for a competitor in West Africa.
Yeah, he did such a great job we just couldn't afford to have the competetion scoop him up...
Although Tuesday's report found no wrongdoing by Kofi Annan, it clearly faulted the secretary-general's management of the world body and his oversight of the oil-for-food program.
And there's no jail time for that. I wonder where he's celebrating tonight?
The report is the second issued by Volcker's team. It coincides with allegations of sex abuse by U.N. peacekeepers and of sexual harassment and mismanagement by senior U.N. staff and comes a week after Kofi Annan called for the biggest overhaul of the United Nations in its 60-year history.
And I'm sure that will be equally hard hitting...
"I think we all share the hope and confidence that the results of our investigation ... may contribute to the larger objective of a reformed U.N., a U.N. capable of commanding and maintaining the support of its member states and the public at large," Volcker said.
Put money on that, Paul? Wanna match paychecks?
Senior U.N. officials insist the secretary-general has no intention of stepping down, and U.N. spokesman Fred Eckhard dismissed reports describing the secretary-general as weak and depressed.
No, no. The party continues!
Volcker's Independent Inquiry Committee found that Kojo Annan was not forthcoming with either his father or the committee and accused him of consistently trying to hide the nature of his relationship with Cotecna. It said an investigation was continuing into Kojo Annan's dealings with the program. In a letter annexed to the report, Kojo Annan's lawyer, William R. Taylor, rejected any claim that Kojo Annan had not been wholly cooperative with the committee. But Taylor admitted he had not told his father the entire truth.
Yo, like, sorry, pops.
"He regrets the embarrassment that omission caused to his father and to the United Nations and accepts responsibility for it," Taylor wrote. The Volcker report said that while Cotecna "generally has cooperated" with the investigation, the committee "concludes that Cotecna has made false statements to the public, the United Nations, and the committee." After a British newspaper, The Sunday Telegraph, reported the link between Kojo Annan and Cotecna in January 1999, the report said, "Cotecna disguised its continuing relationship with Kojo Annan by routing the payments that were made to him" through three different companies, in response to instructions from the secretary-general's son.
Ah, Kojo wasn't as dumb as we all thought...
The secretary-general initiated an inquiry through his staff, which concluded within a day that Kojo Annan's connection to Cotecna was not known to the officials handling contract bids.
See? Good enough for me! Bring the limo around and let's see if we can beat the dinner crowd, shall we?
Volcker's investigation, however, concluded, that Kofi Annan's inquiry "was inadequate" and that the issue should have been referred to the U.N. legal office or internal watchdog. In an attached letter, Kofi Annan's lawyer defended the secretary-general's action, saying he acted on the advice of three advisers.
Moe, Larry, and Curly no doubt.