UN PGA
Abdulla Shahid Still Hides Funding As
China Trashes Michaels and Staff Ban Press
By Matthew
Russell Lee, Patreon
BBC
- Guardian
UK - Honduras
- ESPN
UN GATE, Sept 27
–
After UN President of the
General Assembly John Ashe was
indicted for taking bribes
from Chinese government
businessman Ng Lap Seng, and
died before trial, the UN's
lone reform was to say that
future PGAs would disclose how
their office and travel and
staff members were
funded.
And now, even
that insufficient reform is
not being complied with. And
the Press that asks about
ongoing UN corruption is
banned.
On September 16
Inner City Press wrote to new
PGA Abdulla Shahid's
spokesperson Monica Grayley,
"state when you will put on
the PGA website the financial
and staffing information
committed to after the
indictment of then PGA John
Ashe."
It asked for
confirmation of receipt, and a
copy of the list of speakers
for the UNGA High Level Week
beginning September
21.
More than 24
hours later, neither was
provided, nor any response on
what Shahid, Maldives' foreign
minister, will do to ensure
access to "his" UNGA by the
Press which asks these
questions.
But when Shahid
spoke - bragged - on September
27, he did not mention the at
least four entrants to the GA
who tested positive for COVID
(as did at least one foreign
ministry's spokesman). After
speeches by China trashing the
Two Michaels as spies, Shahid
without comment thanked his
team - whose funding he has
refused to disclose, after at
least two Chinese bribery
scandals. His spokesperson
Monica Grayley has yet to
answer a single Inner City
Press question.
There is a
pending application to the UN
Media Accreditation and
Liaison Unit, acknowledged
(unlike PGA Shahid's Grayley)
but not acted on.
So on September
17, with the "Team" section of
PGA Shahid's website still
empty, Inner City Press wrote
to two other staffers in the
PGA's office, Carl
Mercer Lead,
Communications, Advocacy &
Speechwriting and Ahmed Salman
Zaki, Executive Assistant to
the PGA. Ten says, nothing.
Watch this site.
***
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