Un
Ban's
Unilateral
Changes Voted
Down, As He
Flies Qatar
Jets,
Favors Friends
By
Matthew
Russell Lee
UNITED
NATIONS,
April 2 -- In
what must be
seen as a
failure for UN
Secretary
General Ban
Ki-moon and
those who
support him,
Ban's plan
to beginning
implementing
"change
management"
without
General
Assembly
approval was
resoundingly
voted down on
Monday
night.
After
deadlines
passed votes
were called.
The United
States
proposed a
pro-Ban
amendment to a
resolution
introduced by
Algeria for
the Group of
77.
The US
amendment
lost, with
only 47 for,
five
abstaining and
88
against.
Then
US Ambassador
Joe Torsella
provided to
divide
Algeria's
resolution in
two. After
much
confusion,
this too was
voted down,
with 48 in
favor, four
abstaining and
now 91
against.
Finally,
Algeria's
resolution
which requires
Ban to come to
the GA was
adopted with
93
for, 47
against and
give
abstaining.
Afterward,
Torsella said
that
Ban should not
have to come
to the General
Assembly about
his dictat
that others
fly economy
class.
But
Ban for
example flies
in Qatar's
fancy jet,
disclosed only
after Inner
City
Press repeatedly
had to ask. It
remains
unclear if Ban
will disclose
when he
accepts such
gifts,
which may
present a
conflict of
interest,
from
particular
member states.
This
is the
problem with
Ban's reforms
-- Ban is not
reforming,
witness the
$433 million
Capital Master
Plan cost
overrun under
this watch,
and he is not
transparent.
He proposed
mobility for
others, but
kept his
friends
like Kim
Won-soo close
at hand by
moving them
laterally
while staying
in New York.
Another
long time
Executive
Office of the
S-G staffer
previously
covered, Inner
City
Press is
reliably
informed,
didn't even
want to leave
his office on
the North
Lawn's third
floor on April
2, for the
short
"mobility"
move to the
so-called
Luggage
Building. Some
reformer. We
will have
more on this
-- watch this
site.
The
session ended,
as before,
with Eritrea's
Fifth
Committee
representatives
praising the
chairman but
not the
working
methods, which
he this time
called
"camping in
Occupy Wall
Street style
in Conference
Room 5."
Analysis:
Some
wonder, how
can Ban and UN
preach
democracy
while trying
to bypass
member states
on their often
hypocritical
or only
partially
implemented
"reform"
proposals? The
debate
demonstrated
once again the
extent to
which Ban is a
man, or
puppet, of the
West.
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