Although the event – which included an
opening address by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and a panel with
Under-Secretary-General for Management Angela Kane (who has been accused of
misconduct for publicly retaliating against a whistleblower) – seemed to
present OIOS as an effective watchdog (albeit with room for improvement), GAP’s
sources beg to differ. A preponderance of the evidence shows that the OIOS
Investigations Division (OIOS/ID) – the unit that is
supposed to investigate misconduct – is in many cases failing to do so and is
also avoiding the implementation of much needed steps to improve its capacity
to serve as an effective watchdog:
Exhibit #1: The Secretary-General stated during his opening
remarks that the establishment of the UN’s Ethics Office was a significant
accountability advance. What he failed to mention was that according to the Ethics Office’s August 2009 report to the General
Assembly (para. 66), OIOS/ID failed
to investigate a case of whistleblower retaliation referred to it by the Ethics
Office, even though OIOS is tasked with conducting such investigations (para 5.5). Several whistleblowers have also
approached GAP with complaints about OIOS’ failure to investigate their retaliation
claims. How can OIOS expect witnesses to come forward with misconduct
allegations when it refuses to protect them from retaliation for doing so? GAP
submitted this question to the panel (via email) but the moderator failed to
raise it, opting instead to end the panel 20 minutes early for a milk and
cookie break.
Exhibit #2: As alluded to by panel member Inga-Britt Ahlenius,
Under-Secretary-General for Internal Oversight Services, OIOS/ID has been
without a permanent director for more than two years, despite the nomination of
qualified candidates, such as former head of the UN Procurement Task Force Robert Appleton. The fact that OIOS/ID lacks a permanent director
who is protected from pressure and retaliation deprives the organization of a
needed resource and deterrent to corruption, as pointed out in paragraph 22 of OIOS’ 2009 annual report. GAP also submitted a question regarding this
situation, which the moderator once again failed to raise.
Exhibit #3: External reports have found that OIOS-ID is broken. A 2007 review by a UN consultant found that there appeared to be “something
fundamentally awry with ID, its operating procedures and its underlying
culture.” A separate assessment found similar problems and stated that: “the lack of
effectiveness and high quality work of ID/OIOS is of critical importance
because it affects the overall functioning of the Organization. First, it is
detrimental to the Organization’s ability to manage and detect corruption,
fraud and other serious offenses, which has in recent years damaged the
reputation of the Organization and has engendered a sense of mistrust. Second,
it impedes the ability of the Organization to combat and prevent future
instances of wrongdoing.” OIOS has also come under fire from a former OIOS investigator who accused the office of
whitewashing a report about wrongdoing committed by UN peacekeepers in the
Congo.
Exhibit #4: As reported by the UN’s Independent Audit Advisory Committee, OIOS (especially OIOS/ID), has an
extremely high vacancy rate, as more than 27 percent of its authorized posts
are unfilled. Meanwhile, sources report that many OIOS/ID investigations into
significant cases of fraud, such as one involving the misuse of USAID money by UN
agencies in Afghanistan, are
languishing. The rumor is that OIOS/ID is not conducting a single external
investigation at the moment despite ongoing allegations of serious corruption. The General Assembly has
requested that the Secretary-General fill these vacancies as a matter of
priority. But instead of filling these positions, OIOS/ID is reportedly trying
to reduce its mandate by claiming that it does not have the authority to
investigate external contractors or former staff members accused of misconduct.
But if they don’t, who will?
Until OIOS/ID addresses these problems, it
will be unable to effectively conduct its vital watchdog mission.
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