UN
Pension Fund
Preps Post for
Subject of
OIOS
Discipline
Recommendation
By
Matthew
Russell Lee
UNITED
NATIONS,
July 15 – As
the UN Pension
Fund stands
poised to
designate a
new deputy
director,
sources tell
Inner City
Press that
first among
the three
finalists is
an individual
previously
recommended
for discipline
by the Office
of Internal
Oversight
Service, Paul
Dooley.
Inner
City Press, contacted by
whistleblowers
inside the
Pension Fund,
previously dug
into a lack of
accountability
there. It
obtained and
reported on
OIOS'
"Investigation
of conflict of
interest,
favoritism and
mismanagement
at the UN
Joint Staff
Pension Fund"
describing how
through the
Pension Fund's
Paul Dooley,
millions of
dollars in
contacts were
given to a
company called
Sprig, Ltd,
run by Gerald
Bodell, who
was previously
Dooley's
supervisor at
Guardian
Mortgage
Corporation.
Recommendations
1 and 2 of the
OIOS
investigative
report
directed that
"appropriate
action be
taken”
regarding
Dooley as well
as Dulcie
Bull.
Previous
chief
Bernard G.
Cocheme
refused to
implement the
recommendation
for
discipline.
Farhan Haq,
then as now a
UN
spokesperson,
confirmed to
Inner City
Press Cocheme's
decision not
to discipline:
Subj:
Your
question on
OIOS and the
Pension Fund
From: Farhan
Haq [at]
un.org
To: Inner City
Press
In March 2006,
the OIOS
completed an
investigation
into
allegations of
possible
conflict of
interest,
favoritism and
mismanagement
at the United
Nations Joint
Staff Pension
Fund. Based
upon the
evidence
adduced, OIOS
concluded that
several staff
members -
including two
Senior UNJSPF
staff - have
acted
improperly in
connection to
contracts for
information
technology
services
awarded to a
consultant
retained by
UNJSPF.
OIOS
issued
several
recommendations
in this case,
including that
UNJSPF
management
take
appropriate
action against
its two staff.
The Chief
Executive
Officer of
UNJSPF
informed OIOS
that he
disagrees with
the findings
and
recommendations
of the report
of
investigation
- as regards
the actions of
his staff -
and advised
that he
"intends to
take no
action" with
regard to
them. OIOS
advised him
that pursuant
to its
mandate, it
will report
his response
to the General
Assembly.
That was one
thing. But
to now promote
the individual
to deputy
chief? As one
Pension Fund
source put it
to Inner City
Press, there
is less and
less
accountability
in the UN, the
more and more
they talk
about it
elsewhere.
Back
then, the UN
fought back
against Inner
City Press'
reports by a spurious
Security
complaint how
Inner City
Press went to
the Pension
Fund to cover
a meeting.
This was
repeated last
year when
Inner City
Press covered
meetings of
Herve Ladsous'
Senior
Advisory Group
on
Peacekeeping
Operations
including a
Sri Lankan
military
figure
depicted in
the UN's own
reports as
engaged in war
crimes.
And
this summer,
the UN
has threatened
to suspend or
withdraw Inner
City Press' accreditation
for merely
hanging a sign
of the new Free UN Coalition for Access, which it
co-founded to
oppose the
earlier type
of attacks,
against any
journalist.
The
process at the
Pension Fund
is moving
fast, with the
Board expected
to make a
recommendation
to Secretary
General Ban
Ki-moon even
this week.
Watch this
site.
* * *
These
reports
are
usually also available through Google
News and on Lexis-Nexis.
Click here
for Sept 26, 2011 New Yorker on Inner City
Press at UN
Click
for
BloggingHeads.tv re Libya, Sri Lanka, UN
Corruption
Feedback:
Editorial [at] innercitypress.com
UN Office: S-303,
UN, NY 10017 USA
Reporter's mobile (and weekends):
718-716-3540
Other, earlier Inner City Press are
listed here,
and some are available in the ProQuest service,
and now on Lexis-Nexis.
Copyright 2006-2013 Inner City Press,
Inc. To request reprint or other permission,
e-contact Editorial [at] innercitypress.com
|