By Matthew Russell Lee, Patreon Maxwell Book
BBC-Guardian UK - Honduras - ESPN NY Mag
UN GATE, June 20, Exclusive – The UN system has been increasingly corrupted under Antonio Guterres, who has banned the Press that asks, won't even answer US law firm Quinn Emanuel about his lack of content neutral media access rules. Now this, sent to banned Inner City Press about the UN in Somalia, UNSOS:
Dear Mr. Lee The below was sent to SG and top management in HQ and OIOS. The situation in UNSOS is a disaster and the same is everywhere. The new Delegation of Authority is simply aggravating the endemic UN corruption. Thank you Sent: Friday, June 17, 2022 7:15:56 AM To: AG <ag@un.org> Cc: Catherine Pollard <pollardc@un.org>; Ben Swanson <swanson1@un.org>; Elia Armstrong <armstronge@un.org>; Rosemary Anne Di Carlo <rosemary.dicarlo@un.org>; Martha Helena Lopez <lopez22@un.org>; New York Staff Union <newyorkstaffunion@un.org>; Valentine Rugwabiza <valentine.rugwabiza@un.org>; Mark Polane <polane@un.org>; OIOS Hotline <oioshotline@un.org> Subject: UNSOS is a disaster Dear Secretary General, We would like to report to you the unbearable situation of corruption and wrongdoings in UNSOS with the brilliant complicity of top management in HQ especially in DOS and FPD. Nowadays the above is mostly everywhere and visible by far in the UN Missions because the New Delegation of Authority given to the SRSGs has become a Delegation for Abuse of Authority particularly for recruitments. Given the level of corruption, this task should be IMMEDIATELY outsourced from the UN and given to a reliable Private Company or Public Institution. I would like to explain to you what happened in our Mission, UNSOS, Mogadishu and the related chain of events. Ms. Qurat Ul Ain Sadozia has been selected as Chief Supply Chain Management at D1 Level by ASG Ms. Filipetto, of whom she is a very good friend.
Under normal circumstances, Ms. Qurat had no chances to be selected as she has no experience and relevant qualifications in Supply Chain Management but who cares about it if you have the support of the Head of the Mission? Nobody. Especially because the Delegation of Authority allows this type of mismanagement particularly if the candidate is a female, as the gender balance is immediately invoked as an excuse for recruitment. Her working experience in Pakistan and Afghanistan has nothing to do with Supply Chain Management.
Ms. Sadozia had only one year and a half working as P5 United Nations Mines Action Service Officer in Somalia and previously three years as P4 Program Manager with UNMAS. Despite several staff complaining about this abuse with MEU and requesting an OIOS investigation, Ms. Qurat is happily sitting in her position of which responsibilities she knows nothing about. This recruitment was highly sponsored by DOS in New York to allow Ms. Helen Dodd, former P5 Chief Procurement Officer in UNSOS to move to Chief Supply Chain Management in Mali, D1, under another golden boy of DOS Mr. Anton Antchev, D2 (PNG in Mali for discrimination on National Staff) consequent promotion of Mr. Herbert Pechek as D1 Chief Supply Chain in Brindisi GSC. Both of them recruited their wives in the UN (Mr. Antchev in UNMIK as P4 and Mr. Pechek as P3 in Brindisi).
Mr. Pecheck was previously promoting his wife`s clothing selling on the internet using his Staff as models. Nobody seems to look at his Linkedin where he calls himself as Ambassador of SCM.
Just to let you better understand the collusion`s scheme, Ms. Dodd was transferred to HQ, as D1 Supply Chain Planning to make “happy” Mr. Christian Saunders, ASG Supply Chain, of whom she has been protected till date from her poor performance as Chief Procurement Officer but excellent in promoting physical activities for staff.
This is her unique activity in the UN. She was so good in this task that she even recruited an Ivorian gym attendant as International Consultant in MINUSTAH, Mr. Eric Tizie, with the purpose of a” train the trainer gym instructor”.
In one of the poorest Countries in the world, during all economic, social and political problems, she was allowed to waste UN money in such a way, paying for months for someone to come from Africa to train the gym instructors in Haiti for UN Staff. In Haiti there were no gym instructors according to Ms. Dodd. This money should be immediately retracted from her salary and an investigation launched for the purpose. Why was it done? Who allowed such abuses? Her UN companion Ms. Pia Stefanizzi, of whom Mr. Tizie was the toy boy, sponsored this recruitment.
Ms. Stefanizzi, despite this performance once OiC Mission Support in MINUSTAH, has been promoted to CMS D1 MINUJUSTH. Ms. Dodd went in and out of the UN anytime she wished to, especially when she was under investigation. Recently, she got a very nice D1 post in New York, as Chief Supply Chain Planning. Maybe she might be the next D2 Director of the UN in Ukraine, next year, after such a prodigious career.
UNSOS has a consolidated record of brilliant staff like Ms. Dodd. We are referring to her peer D1 Chief Service Delivery Mr. Clark Toes who is now working from Nairobi after being declared Persona Non Grata from Somalia after abuses on local contractors. Ms. Selvi Yurtalan, former Chief Engineering Section, under his supervision, was removed from her task as she was declared not capable and appointed in another Section in UNSOS. Previously she performed in a similar manner in MINUSCA under the “famous” former Director of Mission Support Mr. Milan Trojanovic (many times PNG and under investigations for abuses as part of his records).
A Mission that has no more fuel because all has been stolen and has no fuel Officer…. but has splendid top management always under investigation. Instead of suspending such management staff who misbehave or commit frauds, the Organization, particularly DOS with FPD, is seeking to cover the scandals and transfer them, with all financial benefits and no sanctions, waiting for the perfect opportunity to move them to a new Mission possibly with a promotion. OHRM in the meantime is silently sitting without saying a word.
All of the previous “good Staff” also have big chances to become D2 Director of Mission Support in MINUSCA, considering that all Directors under scrutiny for the position have been subject to disciplinary actions including PNG like (sic) Milan Trojanovic. They can also be excellent for UNSOS! Why not? As the UN must promote and encourage women for higher positions, we have still Ms. Sandi Arnold UNMIK CMS (D1- currently under suspension after the findings of an OIOS investigation for sexual harassments and abuses of power. Despite this, she was recently interviewed for the D2- DMS MINUSCA position.
How was it possible? Where are the sanctions from OHRM?) and Ms. Safia Boly, former Chief of Staff D2 in MONUSCO (protégé “to say the least” of Mr. Anthony Banbury former ASG for Field Support. Her contract on TJO recently ended and there are again wrongdoings. Thanks to her brilliant management in RSCE, some years ago the Organization had to pay 2 years’ salary to a staff member that was subject to her abuses of authority.
We all know that the UN has no memory for Staff who are protected from the top). Nobody seems to see all we mentioned, and no actions taken from OHRM. Welcome to UNSOS! Same…Welcome to the UN!"
Spokespeople Stephane Dujarric and Farhan Haq don't answer written questions despite taking public money; USG Melissa Fleming doesn't even answer her mail. Their UN is corrupt.
We'll have more on this.
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