Benon Sevan has the reason why all that moolah found its way into his others' pockets.
In
his e-mail message, Mr. Sevan said he was the victim of an "intense
smear campaign." He defended the oil-for-food program as having made "a
real difference in the daily lives of the average Iraqi people." As
long as economic sanctions were in place, he added, "there was no
alternative to the program." But, he continued, "it could have been
better administered had we been allowed by the member states to do so."
Mr. Sevan did not explain in his e-mail message how the Security
Council had hampered him from effectively administering the sprawling
program. But diplomats and United Nations officials said it was what
one called "common knowledge" that member states were ignoring the
widespread complaints about kickbacks and payoffs by Saddam Hussein's
government so that their companies could continue being part of the
lucrative program.
Typical UN tactics. It's never their fault.
First he pulls the "I'm being smeared" line and then he puts the blame
on members of the Security Council because, of course, that's where the
problem was. It was the member states, stupid. They were getting kickbacks and they didn't want anyone goofing with that.
Man, is anyone responsible for anything
at the UN, or is it always someone else's fault? What about the
janitors? If they don't take the trash out, do they blame it on someone
else? Forgive me, Sevon, but weren't you in charge of administering
this program? Weren't you charged with the task of making sure that the
money made from the sale of oil went for food to keep the Iraqi public
from the brink of starvation? Wasn't that YOUR job? Or was it just good enough that they were on the brink of starving
and not actually starving. Because there is a difference and I'm sure,
of all people, Benon, you know this. Was it your goal, Benon, to make
sure just enough food got to the people so that no one noticed all the
money that lined your pockets? Was that your plan to keep yourself in
the clear? God, if it was, I can see where you'd be so cheesed off that
you're suddenly being investigated and "smeared." After all, you were
just keeping everyone---and by that I mean the French and the
Russians---happy, weren't you? So, basically the message Sevon
unwittingly is delivering is that:
a. He's incompetent
b. The UN is a bloated bureaucratic nightmare because even he, the most
gifted and skilled of operators, couldn't navigate its unwiedly
labyrinth of corruption. He's confirmed this for us by placing the
blame on the Security Council.
If it hasn't already happened, wait for Sevon to take advantage of the
"fruit of the poisoned tree" defense in regard to Ahmad Chalabi. It
would go something like this: Chalabi was on the Governing Council.
Chalabi wanted KPMG to investigate the kickbacks. Bremer wanted Ernst
and Young to do the math---and he won. After this little catfight,
Chalabi lost favor with the US by having chatted with Iran, and
Chalabi's reputation is currently in tatters. Look for Sevon to point
the finger at Chalabi and henceforth deny any of the accusations
because they came from the Governing Council of which Chalabi plays a
very big role in guiding.