By Matthew Russell Lee
UNITED NATIONS, May 3 – In the UN bribery case against Macau-based businessman Ng Lap Seng, former South South News chief and diplomat Francis Lorenzo is now described in a Superseding Information made public on May 2 as an "agent" of the UN, making it more difficult for the UN to dodge, despite it attempts to hinder Press coverage of the connections. Meanwhile defendant Ng Lap Seng is trying to keep out of the upcoming trial his financial involvement with relatives of Jesse Jackson Jr (which again calls into question how the UN Department of Public Information didn't do even Google "due diligence," then evicted and restricts Inner City Press which asked DPI). Ng's filing quotes the government that "Mr. Ng made a loan to a UNOSSC employee who sought funding from Mr. Ng in order to pursue graduate studies." What has the UN done about any of this, beyond evicting and restricting the Press which is covering the story? On May 3, Inner City Press asked UN holdover spokesman Stephane Dujarric, who not only didn't answer but also rebuffed a question about the UN in the DR Congo, UN transcript here: Inner City Press: John Ashe case and DRC [Democratic Republic of the Congo[. There are two new filings in the John Ashe case, and I wanted to ask you about, in particular, one of them is a superseding indictment of Francis Lorenzo, and it describes him in paragraph 3 as an agent of an organization, to wit, the UN did corruptly solicit and demand, etcetera. But I guess what I’m wondering is, now, if the US Attorney is describing Mr. Francis Lorenzo as an agent of the UN, does this change the way the UN is looking at the case?
Spokesman: We’re looking at the case. I’m not aware that Mr. Lorenzo is an agent of the UN. But, again, we’re looking at the case. And, when we have something more to say, we’ll let you know.
Inner City Press: And another filing at the same time says that… that Ng Lap Seng provided money to and educational loans to a staff member of the Office of South-South Cooperation. That’s not something I ever saw…
Spokesman: Okay. I… I… we have… obviously, we’re following the case. I don’t have anything to say while the proceedings are ongoing. Thank you. I’m going to get Mr. Takasu.
Spokesman: We’re looking at the case. I’m not aware that Mr. Lorenzo is an agent of the UN. But, again, we’re looking at the case. And, when we have something more to say, we’ll let you know.
Inner City Press: And another filing at the same time says that… that Ng Lap Seng provided money to and educational loans to a staff member of the Office of South-South Cooperation. That’s not something I ever saw…
Spokesman: Okay. I… I… we have… obviously, we’re following the case. I don’t have anything to say while the proceedings are ongoing. Thank you. I’m going to get Mr. Takasu.
Lorenzo has now expanded his guilty plea to admit paying bribes to now deceased President of the UN General Assembly John Ashe, and soliciting bribes from Ng. Lorenzo will testify against Ng, whose motion to dismiss the case has been denied. But the UN is still in denial. On April 28 Inner City Press asked the UN's holdover spokesman Stephane Dujarric, UN transcript here: Inner City Press: Francis Lorenzo, the former head of South-South News and former Deputy Permanent Representative of the Dominican Republic to the UN has expanded his guilty plea to a clear and clean admission of having bribed former PGA [President of the General Assembly], may he rest in peace, John Ashe, and he's going to testify against Ng Lap Seng. It gives rise… this now seems to be previously just tax charges. Now he's saying, on the record… taking responsibility, saying he knew it was wrong at the time that he did it. So, my question is: As the case… as the case gets more pointedly in terms of what took place inside the United Nations walls… and yesterday I saw the former DGACM [Department of General Assembly and Conference Management] individual, now retired, who I believe… it seems from the audit is the one that changed the document. What is the ramification? Was anything ever done for that changed document, and what is exactly OLA [Office of Legal Affairs] doing now that there's admission not just of tax charges or evasion, of bribery…?
Spokesman: First of all, the alleged bribery you're referring to does not involve a staff member of the UN. There were audits done, and the situation was looked at very carefully in the past two years, if my memory is correct. We continue, obviously, to follow the developments in the case, and if we need to act upon anything that is revealed by the time the case is done, we shall do so.
Inner City Press: But, I guess the goal of the bribery was to obtain a UN document saying that Macau Conference Center was needed, and that document was obtained from DGACM. So, are you saying that somehow the actual… the ultimate act that they wanted was done without any…?
Spokesman: That's not what I'm saying.
Inner City Press: But, what was done? I saw the guy walking around. Was there any repercussion of any individual named in the audit?
Spokesman: As I said, as more information comes to light, we'll act upon it.
Spokesman: First of all, the alleged bribery you're referring to does not involve a staff member of the UN. There were audits done, and the situation was looked at very carefully in the past two years, if my memory is correct. We continue, obviously, to follow the developments in the case, and if we need to act upon anything that is revealed by the time the case is done, we shall do so.
Inner City Press: But, I guess the goal of the bribery was to obtain a UN document saying that Macau Conference Center was needed, and that document was obtained from DGACM. So, are you saying that somehow the actual… the ultimate act that they wanted was done without any…?
Spokesman: That's not what I'm saying.
Inner City Press: But, what was done? I saw the guy walking around. Was there any repercussion of any individual named in the audit?
Spokesman: As I said, as more information comes to light, we'll act upon it.
Right. The corruption into which the UN sank during the tenure of Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, whose head of the Department of Public Information Cristina Gallach did no due diligence as Ng bought illegal events in the UN and even the UN's slavery memorial, and DPI's censorship of and threats against the Press which reports on the Ng and South South News case has yet to be addressed or even stopped. This has been raised to the top of the Secretariat. Ng's associate Jeff Yin has also pleaded guilty to working to violate UN tax laws with South South News. The UN Department of Public Information evicted and still restricts Inner City Press for seeking to cover UN links to South South News; this month DPI has refused to explain the basis. On April 12 when Inner City Press about the UN's holdover spokesman Stephane Dujarric about the guilty plea, he said SSN is "no longer" at the UN, as if that resolved it. It doesn't, and that has been raised. Video here; from the UN transcript: Inner City Press: question about this Ng Lap Seng, previously John Ashe, case. There’s been now a guilty plea by John Ashe’s lone remaining co-defendant, Jeffrey Yin. And in his guilty plea, he states that South-South News intentionally paid him in cash in order to evade US tax laws. That’s what he’s pled guilty to. Given the supposed inquiry by the UN, what’s the response? It’s not a matter of waiting until the end of the case. This is a…
Spokesman: My understanding is South-South News is no longer accredited as a news organization to the UN.
Spokesman: My understanding is South-South News is no longer accredited as a news organization to the UN.
Under Dujarric, South South News content was included in UN TV webcast and archives; Dujarric threw Inner City Press out of the UN Press Briefing Room for seeking to cover South South News payees in the UN, and worked on the UN misleading memo to the US Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Paragraph 9 and 10, here.
Ng is set for trial, but now an adjournment has been granted to May. The letter motion by Ng Lap Seng's lawyers cites a need to review "many thousands of pages of banking records, emails and other documents related to Jeff Yin, Mr.Ng, Vivian Wang, SKI, and SSN, among others. We are still awaiting production of voluminous
documents, including information contained in DVDs and CDs seized from Vivian Wang’s
residence, tax information for a number of alleged co-conspirators, South South News
documents, phone records, and additional Ashe emails." So is the UN even checking out these new records, to reform itself? It seems not. On April 7 Inner City Press asked UN Spokesman Stephane Dujarric, UN transcript here
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