âWe did not exonerate Kofi Annan. We should not brush this off. A certain mea culpa would have been appropriate.âProfessor Pieth also made it clear that Cotecna, the Swiss firm at the heart of the Annan personal imbroglio, has not been entirely forthcoming with its evidence or accounts (both financial and historical):
âItâs a continuous history of us confronting them, them owning up to something and then backtracking.âFor instance, there was the discrepancy of how much Kojo Annan was paid and for how long. An even more interesting discrepancy that involves the SecGen personally is the number of times he met representatives of Cotecna and the length of time those meetings took.
âa reformed UN, a UN capable of commanding and maintainint the support of its member states and the public at largeâ.Well, make up your mind, which of those supports are you interested in?
Well, well, Sounds familiar?âBut more is at stake here than just wasting American tax dollars, although that is bad enough. By the Clinton administrationâs own admission, it has deceived the American public about UN reform for the last four years. During testimony before congressional committees, in public speeches, and in private conversations, the Clinton team argued repeatedly that Secretary-General Boutros Boutros-Ghali was committed to major administrative and management reform.
They made those claims even after the American under secretary-general for management and administration, selected by the Clinton administration, was fired for being unsuited for the job. They made those claims even after the first Office of UN Inspector General was exposed as a toothless watchdog. And they even made those claims while the secretary-general was recalling and shredding the comprehensive report on UN reform by former under secretary general Richard Thornburgh.â
âThe winner, Kofi Annan, was certainly preferable to Salim [then head of the Organization of African Unity]. Virtually all of Annanâs career has been within the UN system, frequently in management and personnel positions. Few know ââthe systemââ better than Annan. He is, therefore, in the best possible position to deliver on reform, for bureaucratic trials, jargon, and obfuscation are not likely to distract him if he is truly engaged. From January 1, 1997, forward, the world can judge his performanceâand his will.âQuite so. The world is judging him, his performance, his will and, if that is not an oxymoron, his sense of honour.