| UNESCO Executive Board Ends
With Conflicts And Scam of Member States Like
Guterres NYC
By Matthew
Russell Lee & UNESCO
sources
UN GATE, July 24
– Inner
City Press has
been reporting
regularly on
the messy
situation of
UNESCO and on
the countless
embezzlement
schemes
proliferating
under the
French
administration
of DG Audrey
Azoulay.
Since
the beginning
of her
mandate,
following a
totally
unanticipated
election, the
French DG and
her team deal
with the
organization
as if it were
her private
shop or her
family
property.
Despite
this exposure
and the
criticism
expressed by a
limited number
of member
states during
the 209th
session of the
executive
board that
ended only a
week ago, the
majority of
the board
members
remained
tone-deaf to
the legitimate
requests of
both the staff
unions and few
honorable
member states
to redress
this state of
affairs. The
governance
vacuum that
was observed
during this
board session
and the
passivity of
member states
will let DG
Azoulay to
continue
undisturbed
with her
privatization
deals and Quai
d’Orsay led
policy.
During
DG Azoulay's
term in
office,
corruption is
spreading
around
unpunished.
Not only have
measures not
been taken to
fight fraud,
but even
worse, those
involved in
the corruption
schemes are
getting
generous
UNdeserved
promotions and
cushy jobs,
while those
exposing the
corruption are
under constant
threat of
punishments
like in the UN
of Antonio
Guterres.
Following the
exposure by
Inner City
Press of
several
internal
scandals, the
administration
of the French
DG Azoulay got
severely
shaken. But
definitely not
enough.
In
reality, the
COVID-19
crisis
accelerated
the processes
of Azoulay’s
privatizing
grasp over the
organization.
Following her
explicit
instructions,
the Assistant
DG for
Management,
Nicholas
Jeffreys and
the Director
for HR Kazumi
Ogawa, are
proudly
following the
filthy path of
their
predecessor in
the murky HR
business, Hong
Kwon, who got
sacked from
UNESCO for too
much of
obvious
misinterpretation
of rules and
regulations
and above all
for all the
cases lost by
the agency in
Geneva’s ILO
Tribunal.
Both Jeffreys
and Ogawa are
playing the
same role of
executing the
instructions
of the Cabinet
of DG Azoulay
without any
respect for
rules and
regulations.
The two
of them
zealously
approved the
appointments
of dozens of
French
nationals and
covered-up
harassment and
retaliation
against staff
members. In
the absence of
any action
against those
practices by
influential
member states,
they will both
continue to
violate the
rules and the
basic rights
of staff
without
batting an
eyelid in
order to
please their
boss and keep
their
jobs.
Still, the
criticism in
public during
the executive
board against
Kazumi Ogawa,
in front of
the Japanese
ambassador,
made her lose
face and
nerves. She
later
complained to
her staff
about the
pressure on
her to follow
instructions
blindly and to
keep her mouth
wide shut. At
the executive
board, Ogawa
got also
severely
criticized on
the
geographical
distribution
policy.
As a
result of this
heavy
criticism, she
diligently
approved, in
the days
following the
board, the
appointment at
UNESCO of two
members of the
former cabinet
of Azoulay at
the French
ministry of
culture. Job
well done, and
in order to
please even
more the
French
administration,
Kazumi Ogawa
could
fanatically go
for
substituting
the UN flag at
the entrance
of the agency
for the French
flag. As
one of her
direct
subordinates
pointed out:
“…it is
appalling to
see how little
dignity she
has for a
Japanese. She
must have some
other mixed
blood”.
Actually,
Kazumi Ogawa
went as far as
she could in
perverting the
human
resources unit
of
UNESCO.
“Cases of
contestation
against this
administration
expanded, a
disastrous
recruitment
policy was
implemented
and the
political mess
surrounding
the mobility
policy was
masterminded
by Ogawa”,
added the
internal
source.
All the
unprecedented
breaches of
the rules by
DG Azoulay and
serious
misconducts of
the senior
team are
covered up as
well by the
Assistant-DG
for
Administration
Nicholas
Jeffreys who
enthusiastically
put his head
on the block
in order to
please his
boss.
This
led to the
total absence
of
respectfulness
for Jeffreys,
considered as
an
administrative
disaster; “He
couldn’t
manage last
June even the
problem with
the security
guards
extra-time in
office and
their
performance
evaluation,
but at the
same time he
instructed to
manage the
whole admin
processes for
the Agency”, a
source said to
Inner City
Press.
Calamity and
corruption
everywhere at
the UN.
The staff
unions are
definitely
appalled by
the level of
disrespect for
rules and
regulations
and of any
effective
internal
control.
Still, as both
staff unions
have less and
less power and
influence on
the dealings
concerning the
internal
misconducts,
limited
sanctions can
be expected
even after the
public
exposure of
serious cases
of corruption,
abuse of power
and
embezzlement.
Furthermore,
the UNESCO
programs that
DG Azoulay
decides to
implement are
reviewed and
adapted in
order to align
with the
French
priorities.
The Program of
the
organization
adopted by its
general
conference is
ignored and
all efforts
are directed
towards
communication
and public
relations.
It
fully confirms
also what
Inner City
Press had been
told more than
a year ago by
an ambassador
from group one
: "The French
clearly have
an agenda to
reduce the
scope and the
impact of
UNESCO in the
future. The
links between
the leaver(s)
and Azoulay’s
both pere
et fille
are well known
in our
capitals."
The recent
session of the
executive
board revealed
this new
reality – less
and less
countries
actually do
care about
UNESCO’s role
and position
in the world.
The
fundamental
question
therefore is
why member
states keep
paying their
dues and
misuse
tax-payers
money since
they are so
reluctant to
take strong
actions on the
disclosed
cases of
corruption,
traffic of
influence and
embezzlement.
Obviously, the
European Union
rich-countries-club
solidarity is
playing a role
so as to
pledge
institutional
impunity to
the French DG
Azoulay and
her top
managers.
Imagine for a
moment their
political
stance if the
Director
General had
been elected
from a
developing
country...!
Inner
City Press
will have more
on that.
***
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