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After UNOPS Corruption Exposed by Inner City Press Staff Tell It Rots Redux as Board Looms

By Matthew Russell Lee, Patreon

UN GATE, Jan 13 – In the United Nations under Antonio Guterres, there is nothing but failure and excuses and fundraising on crises like Gaza, Ukraine, Syria, Burma, Haiti and Cameroon. 

There is impunity for sexual abuse by peacekeepers and UN staff like Juan Carlos Cunillera, just "along for the ride" during the UN sex-in-the-van exposed by Inner City Press. 

But now as we looked at and asked about Guterres' omission of his links to UN briber CEFC China Energy, leading to him banning the Press (and Melissa Fleming continuing the ban, not even answering a law firm's pro bono letter), on April 17, 2022 we published on other officials - including long time UNOPS operative Vitaly Vanshelboim (whom Inner City Press covered in connection with UNOPS gag orders before being banned from UN by corrupt Guterres.)

We noted  that Vanshelboim's skeeze in the S3i scam of UNOPS's Grete Faremo.

  While others then noted for example that a long time member of the UN Correspondents Association Gloria Starr Kins played a role in hooking up the fraud, they don't mention UNCA and their role in banning the Press. On December 13, 2024, UNCA will put access to Guterres up for sale again at Cipriani: no questions have been answered.

Now this:

Dear Matthew Russell Lee and Inner City Press editorial team,  

Thank you for your invaluable assistance in amplifying our voices. As we approach the forthcoming Executive Board meeting at the end of the month, we kindly request your continued support. UNOPS is expected to attempt to mislead the Executive Board regarding the successful implementation of the Comprehensive Response Plan. We cannot allow them to continue their deceit!  

 Current and former UNOPS staff are raising alarms over governance failures and the organization’s inadequate response to systemic issues exposed by the 2022 S3i scandal. These unresolved problems, coupled with weak strategic planning, ineffective leadership, and entrenched corruption, are eroding the organization’s stability. A demoralized workforce, compounded by abuse of power and opacity, highlights the severity of the crisis.  Despite the gravity of the S3i revelations, UNOPS leadership has relied on superficial measures to pacify stakeholders and the executive board while neglecting meaningful reforms. This failure to address deeper structural issues continues to undermine trust and organizational integrity.  Mismanagement of the cost-recovery model, poor planning, and weak internal controls have worsened financial stability. Temporary fee reductions and misdirected budgets have backfired, resulting in staff layoffs in 2025.

 Leadership’s lack of transparency in financial disclosures and strategic planning suggests an intent to conceal these failings from both staff and the Executive Board.  Governance failures extend beyond finances. Long-serving directors have consolidated power into "power clans," perpetuating favoritism and shielding misconduct. Mechanisms meant to address wrongdoing lack independence, dismiss valid concerns, and leave whistleblowers vulnerable to retaliation.

 A toxic culture of fear persists, with rising reports of harassment and retaliation. Performance evaluations and precarious contracts are weaponized to silence dissent. Ineffective staff association and accountability mechanisms further erode morale, risking continued financial instability, reputational damage, and the erosion of UNOPS’ mission integrity.

 The upcoming First Regular Session of 2025, from 27–31 January, will be critical. UNOPS leadership is expected to push for closure of the 3Si scandal response plan. Yet unresolved issues highlighted in the Executive Board’s (EB) 2024 report demand urgent attention.  In the last annual session of 2024, the EB called for transparency and accountability, urging UNOPS to provide evidence of meaningful progress through comprehensive validation of the implementation points. Yet UNOPS leadership tried to divert attention and cover up for these. Restoring trust requires verifiable reforms, not cosmetic cover-ups.  The EB also emphasized that capacity gaps and implementation challenges remain, with poor knowledge-sharing as a significant concern.

Recent staff cuts reflect leadership’s lack of openness and planning, and the misuse of ICA/LICA contracts—offering limited protections—underscores reliance on unsustainable solutions. Delegations have called for stronger oversight, revisions to the whistleblower policy, and updates in Q1 2025.  Yet, Executive Director Jorge Moreira da Silva, or “George,” as he prefers, has failed to address these concerns, attempting to deflect attention toward questionable achievements. His push to prematurely declare closure of the Comprehensive Response Plan (CRP) during the upcoming session underscores the ongoing lack of transparency and accountability.  Of the actions outlined in the Comprehensive Response Plan (CRP), there are HR-related issues that should have been the foundation for building a better organization but have been neglected, demonstrating the lack of commitment from senior management to improving accountability and oversight.

In preparation for the upcoming Executive Board session, where UNOPS is clearly struggling to demonstrate meaningful and fit-for-purpose reforms, the People and Culture Group (PCG), under the leadership of Valerie Kushata, has spent the last two months of 2024 in a frenzy, rushing the implementation of a series of superficial changes regarding Well-Being, Talent Management, Speak Up, and other areas in an attempt to address some points of the CRP. However, since her arrival in 2023, the PCG director has been complicit in a series of irregularities concerning personnel matters, including workplace harassment, sexual harassment, and a complete lack of oversight and controls to ensure the proper implementation of Performance Evaluation Reports and Performance Improvement Plans, among others.  UNOPS cannot continue misleading its staff, partners, and the Executive Board.

Restoring trust and ensuring the organization’s viability requires meaningful accountability, genuine reform, and a commitment to addressing systemic challenges. Anything less threatens the very integrity of its mission. 
   With utmost appreciation,  The UNOPS Personnel Collective Seeking Accountability


  We'll have more on this.

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