by Matthew Russell Lee, Patreon Book Substack
UN GATE, July 20 – How corrupt and decrepit has the UN system become under Antonio Guterres, in this case due to Guterres? Today's example is again from the Office of the High Commission for Human Rights, to which Guterres appointed his unqualified Austrian crony Volker Turk more than two years ago.
Now in Vienna, the head of UNODC is out - staff sent Inner City Press more:
Ghada Waly has resigned from her position claiming family reasons. She had dropped her responsibilities and fled from several investigations for staff harassment, abuse of authority and conflict of interest, following her joining the board of directors of a prime real estate company in her home country. Ghada Waly later changed her version, stating that the Secretary General asked her to stay until November. She will extend her mandate, but will work from her home, with the agreement of her boss. Her staff, however, remember very well the tough stance she has always taken against teleworking, even during the COVID crisis, when some staff had relatives hospitalized and even lost some family members. Ghada Waly does not respect any rule, especially those she expects others to comply with.
Meanwhile, UNOV/UNODC personnel in Cairo are desperate and subject to all kind of harassment and exploitation. Ghada Waly uses UN staff in Cairo as her personal servants and UNOV/UNODC office assets as her own property. Staff in the organisation are asking for a thorough investigation on Ghada Waly's abuse of authority and inappropriate use of office resources. Someone should just look into the logbook of the UNOV/UNODC drivers who, during and after working hours, are forced to drive Ghada Waly, her family members and even friends to shopping malls, medical appointment, parties, airport and so on.
While the Director General continues to enjoy the nice salary and benefits of a UN Undersecretary General, UNOV/UNODC continues to be run by a group of corrupted, incompetent and unprofessional cronies. Ghada Waly recently appointed as Director for Policy Affairs Candice Welsch, another North American, who got her position against more experienced and competent colleagues, some of them from the African Group. Despite the serious crisis the UN and UNOV/UNODC are facing, Candice Welsch recently decided to take more than one month of vacation. Where is her sense of responsibility and duty? She has been having fun while hundreds of colleagues are losing their job. Isn’t this irresponsible?
As the previous article also exposed, the rich consultancy deal between Jeremy Douglas and Mark Shaw, the Director of the Global Initiative and the husband of Brigitte Strobel-Shaw, who ironically heads the anti-corruption department of UNOV/UNODC, has not stopped. The Secretary General is not interested in what happens in Vienna and even endorses the corrupt practices happening there."
Guterres is the kingpin of the corruption. Turk as a staffer on Guterres' 38th floor did nothing when his boss Guterres had the critical Press roughed up and thrown out. There has been no due process since, not even a response to Guterres' Melissa Fleming to a pro bono inquiry for Inner City Press from the law firm Quinn Emanuel. On June 19, 2025, this re-application.
Watch this site.
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