As
UNDP Confirms
Grynspan Jet,
It Stonewalls
on Audits, Kumar
By
Matthew
Russell Lee,
Exclusive
UNITED
NATIONS,
June 27 --
Five days
after Inner
City Press
posed
Afghanistan
corruption
questions to
the UN
Development
Program, and launched
its
audit-a-day
exclusive
series,
on June 27
UNDP provide
some partial
answers and
asked they
they be
published in
full. They are
below.
On
the afternoon
of June 22,
Inner City
Press asked
UNDP, among
other things:
"Please
describe
expenses for
Ms. Grynspan's
trip to
Afghanistan,
including
leasing (from
UNAMA) of
plane for
flight from
Dubai, and the
redeployment /
hiding of
armored
vehicles
during her
visit."
On
June 27, UNDP
has answer
thusly:
"The
UN
Under
Secretary-General
and UNDP
Associate
Administrator
Ms.
Rebeca
Grynspan flew,
as recommended
by UN
operations, on
Dubai-Kabul-Dubai
flights made
available on
12 and 14 July
by
UNAMA, on UN
operated
planes, as
they were the
most suitable
and
secure
options. UNDP
uses armoured
vehicles to
ensure the
safety of
staff,
including for
high level
officials who
come on
mission."
As
Inner City
Press reported
in its first
story in this
series,
whistleblowers
complained to
it that UNDP
leased a Lear
Jet for
Grynspan,
while "the
SRSG flies
commercial"
for much less
money.
Inner City
Press also
asked
--Why
Manoj
Basnyat is no
longer the
country
director --
did this have
ANYTHING to do
with the LOTFA
irregularities?
UNDP
has now
answered, "The
previous
country
director of
UNDP in
Afghanistan,
Mr. Manoj
Basnyat left
Afghanistan
after three
and half
years, upon
completion of
his
assignment."
Of
the four
audits
Inner City
Press sent to
UNDP for
comment, UNDP
has answered
on only
one, and on
only one
question, this
one: "In the
second to last
Description on
the first
page, MoI
Chartered
Flight Kabul
Turkey,
please confirm
or deny that
UNDP did not
send anyone
with policing
experience to
go check out
the training
in Turkey."
UNDP
denies: "UNDP
facilitated
the training
of more than
500 Afghan
police
officers in
Turkey in
2011, as part
of an
agreement
between
Afghanistan’s
Ministry of
Interior/LOTFA
and the
Turkish
Government."
But
did
"facilitating"
involve
anything more
than arranging
for the
flights?
Significantly,
UNDP
still hasn't
even purported
to answer this
Inner City
Press
question,
"Please
describe
criticisms
brought to the
attention
of UNDP by
donors about
LOTFA, even
prior to the
public
exposure of
the scandal."
Instead,
UNPD has
provided a
long
narrative,
which it asked
to be
published in
full and
is, here:
UNDP
responds
to recent
stories on
Afghan audit
of the Law and
Order Trust
Fund for
Afghanistan
(LOTFA)
Afghanistan
is
one of the
most
challenging
places in the
world to work
in. The UN
has not been
spared and
many have lost
colleagues and
friends in
terrorist
attacks.
The
insecurity,
the lack of
infrastructure,
the widespread
corruption and
the harshness
of the terrain
make the
implementation
of any project
there
extremely
difficult.
Despite
all
these
challenges and
dangers, the
UN family and
UNDP in
particular
have remained
there and will
continue to do
so for as long
as needed, to
fulfill the
mission of
helping the
Afghan people
return
to a life of
safety and
dignity.
The
Law
and Order
Trust Fund for
Afghanistan
project of
building and
strengthening
a national
police force
is pivotal to
achieving
this.
Since
LOTFA’s
establishment
in 2002, the
police force
in Afghanistan
has
grown from
around 50,000
to over
110,000
personnel.
Thanks to
LOTFA:
-
80 percent of
the more than
120,000 Afghan
police receive
their
salaries
directly in
their bank
accounts
through
verifiable
electronic
funds transfer
(EFT), whereas
five years
ago, this
figure
was less than
one percent.
-
The rapid
expansion of
EFT has
significantly
reduced the
potential
for inaccurate
payments and
in
inaccessible
regions of the
country
with no banks,
new technology
like mobile
phone money
transfers is
being used to
minimize risks
and fraud.
-
LOTFA has also
provided
training to
1,700
government
officials at
the
Ministry of
Interior in
systems and
processes for
financial
management,
accounting,
human
resources,
administration,
and latest
payroll and
funds transfer
technologies.
UNDP
has
been hiring
external,
independent
companies to
conduct audits
In
Afghanistan.
This is an
essential part
of UNDP's
internal
control
mechanism. The
audit, which
appeared on
the internet,
was in draft
form and does
not reflect
the content of
the final
audit report.
Investigations
are
currently
ongoing into
various
operational
aspects of
LOTFA.
Following
UNDP's strict
anti-fraud
policy as well
as staff rules
and
regulations,
appropriate
temporary and
permanent
measures are
being
taken towards
concerned
contractors
and staff as
the
investigation
progresses.
The
recent
actions
reiterate
UNDP's zero
tolerance of
fraud and its
commitment to
prevent,
identify and
address all
acts of fraud.
The
investigations
-- which began
weeks before
allegations of
fraud first
appeared in
the media --
are conducted
confidentially
in order to
preserve the
process’
integrity and
to protect the
rights of all
parties
concerned. Its
conclusions
will be made
public once
the
process is
completed.
Beyond the
broad
"Please
describe
criticisms
brought to the
attention of
UNDP by
donors about
LOTFA, even
prior to the
public
exposure of
the
scandal," one
would think
UNDP will have
to answer this
specific: "the
date on which
each of
Basnyet,
Sandeep Kumar
and
Ubadallah
Sahibzada
became aware
of the
irregularities
and of the
attached
audits." Watch
this site.