In
Corrupt UN of Guterres As UNESCO Makes
Some Moves Would Next UNSG Do Even That?
By Matthew
Russell Lee &
sources,
Exclusive
UN
GATE, May 9
– UNESCO,
like the whole
UN system
under Antonio
Guterres was
been
falling apart
in corruption
and fraud.
Inner
City Press has
been reporting
on serious
malfeasance by
the French
Audrey Azoulay
administration
at UNESCO in
Paris, almost
as bad as
Antonio
Guterres'
corruption in
and of the UN
in New York. A
fish rots from
the head.
The
UNESCO
corruption
series is now
more than 145
stories
long. Since
November 2025,
the Egyptian
former
Minister Mr
Khaled
El-Enany is
the DG of the
Agency.
His election
had raised
high
hopes.
Last April 15,
Inner City
Press wrote
the following
(here)
“Time is
passing, and
yet nothing
has changed in
the corridors
of power,
which remain
in the hands
of Audrey
Azoulay’s
former
cronies. Left
alone with his
illusions, the
Egyptian
Director-General
clearly
believes he
can manage
UNESCO’s
affairs
alongside the
very people
who caused the
problems, and
even counts on
them to move
the
Organization
forward”.
Well,
in less than a
month since
the above
article, two
of the four
senior
officials have
been removed
from their
posts, a move
that might be
seen as the
first major
corrective
action taken
by the new
administration. Will
a new UN SG do
even this? So
far the
candidates are
untransparent,
more of the
same.
At
UNESCO,
Margaux
Bergeon-Dars,
Director of
the
Director-General’s
Cabinet, was
the first to
be moved
from her
position.
The
next person to
step down from
his position
next month is
the Director
of Legal
Affairs,
Santiago
Villalpando.
His extensive
experience in
interpreting
rules and
regulations in
a biased
manner to
favor former
Director-General
Audrey
Azoulay, to
the detriment
of staff
members and
Member States,
was apparently
viewed as an
asset by the
International
Court of
Justice, which
elected
Santiago
Villalpando to
the position
of Registrar a
few days
ago. A
compilation of
reporting
concerning Mr.
Villalpando
and his wife
will be duly
forwarded to
Judge Iwasawa
Yuji,
President of
the
International
Court of
Justice, for
information
and
consideration.
The judge may
also be
interested to
learn of the
number of
cases lost by
Mr.
Villalpando
before the ILO
Tribunal in
Geneva, solely
due to his
incompetence
and his desire
to please his
boss Azoulay,
in disregard
of and in
contradiction
to the
procedures and
legal
obligations
requiring
often an
opposite
opinion and
legal advice.
The
next two on
the list of
departures are
the Director
of the
Internal
Oversight
Service (IOS),
Bernardin
Assiene, and
the Assistant
Director-General
for
Administration
and
Management,
Jennifer
Linkins. The
unusual
remorse she
displayed at
the last
session of the
Executive
Board, when
she admitted
that she had
sometimes had
to lie to
please former
Director-General
Azoulay, comes
too late and
is truly
pitiful. Thus,
Linkins,
before the
Executive
Board, in a
pathetic
attempt to
save her job,
stated that
she regretted
the lack of
transparency
and that
“they” should
have listened
more to the
governing
bodies. So, if
there is any
dignity left
in this
meaningless
entity, she
should resign
by
herself.
IOS Director
Bernardin
Assiene will
certainly
begin to feel
the heat and
the pressure
mounting
following the
departure of
Margaux
Bergeon-Dars
from the
crucial
position of
Director
Cabinet, where
she had been
able to shield
him from all
the
irregularities
and covers-up
he committed.
Another
case of
harassment
that was
skillfully
covered up by
the Director
of IOS,
Bernardin
Assiene,
involves the
complaints
filed against
Khadija Ribes
Zammouri. For
the sake of
objectivity,
it should be
noted that Ms.
Zammouri was
appointed to
the post of
ADG for
Administration
on July 1,
2010, by the
former
Director-General
and
unsuccessful
candidate for
the post of UN
Secretary-General,
Irina Bokova
of Bulgaria
(DG/NOTE/10/28).
This was one
of the most
serious
mistakes made
by Ms. Bokova
in selecting a
senior UNESCO
official.
Since then,
Ms. Zammouri
has been
demoted to the
D2 and then D1
grades, and
some claim
that with
enough time
ahead of her,
she could
eventually
successfully
reach the P1/2
level.
Not only is
Ms. Zammouri
unable to
communicate
decently
orally or in
writing in
both working
languages, but
it has
recently come
to light that
complaints of
harassment
against her
are piling up,
and once
again, as in
the case of
several other
ADGs, Assiene
is doing
nothing. Thus,
on the one
hand, staff
are
complaining
about Ms.
Zammouri’s
behavior, and
on the other,
Mr. Assiene is
simply
dismissing
these
complaints. He
is certainly
waiting to see
if ADG Linkins
will promote
Zammouri by
adding
responsibilities
related to the
management and
renovation of
the
headquarters
to her current
duties within
the CLD
(translation
and
documentation).
It should be
recalled that
Zammouri had
already held
these
responsibilities
and had been
removed from
them due to
incompetence.
So, if this
isn’t
sabotage, what
is ADG
Linkins’s
reasoning for
entrusting her
once again
with this same
mission that
she has proven
incapable of
carrying out?
Instead, Ms.
Zammouri
should be
asked to
justify her
management
style, which
is the reason
behind the
growing number
of complaints
against her.
This is where
UNESCO stands
today. We will
have more on
that. Watch
this site.
This is
where UNESCO
stands today.
We will have
more on that.
Watch this
site.
***
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