U.N. Audits Show Oil-For-Food Bilking

[cal04]

Internal audits conducted by the United Nations (news - web sites) of its oil-for-food program revealed lapses in U.N. oversight that allowed contractors to overcharge by hundreds of thousands of dollars, according to copies obtained by The Associated Press.

Two of the audits examined irregularities including overcharging by two companies that were hired to monitor oil sales and the import of humanitarian goods under the program. Another detailed financial mismanagement by a U.N. agency administering humanitarian aid under the program.Though the audits illustrate negligent U.N. management of contracts, a U.N. spokesman said that they also show that the United Nations was monitoring itself during the course of the oil-for-food program.

"These audits do show that this was a program that was highly audited with a great level of oversight by the U.N.," spokesman Stephane Dujarric said Saturday. In an interview with The New York Times published Friday, Volcker downplayed the importance of the audits. "There's no flaming red flags in this stuff," he said.

But investigators from two congressional panels also looking into the corruption allegations said the reports showed systematic problems in the U.N. administration of the program.

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story2&u=/ap/20050109/ap_on_re_mi_ea/oil_for_food_investigation

[XOKCowboy]

1. Sounds like Halliburton...

in Iraq.

[daleo]

2. It sounds like there really weren't many problems

An audit of a large program ($60 billion dollars) is always bound to turn up some stuff - in this case, having contractors overcharge by a few hundred thousand dollars is small beer. The Republicans will have to move to Plan B now that they couldn't find a financial scandal - examine Kofi Annan's sex life for adherence to Christian purity. Maybe another Starr is out there, waiting to be born.

[lenidog]

3. Just being a cynic

But isn't having the UN audit its own programs for fraud and kickbacks like having Bush investigating the Ohio vote?

[LynnTheDem]

5. The UN doesn't audit itself. Check UN resolution 666.

There was a committee set up to audit. Guess which nation had the veto power over every sale and every purchase. . .

If ya guessed the US of A...bingo.

[underpants]

7. That will be the RW response to this

Not that I am accusing you-please don't think I am.

Look at how they reacted to the UNSCOM not finding WMD (that weren't there) that the RW was just so sure were there.

[OKNancy]

4. Notice the headline difference

here

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=102&topic_id=1131594

------------

Hard to tell if this is a dupe or not ( LOL ) same story, different slant.

[underpants]

6. Well there really aren't any bombshells

As noted above for a program this size (with this many contractors) there is always going to be some sloppiness.

Now let's audit the StarWars program and compare.

[Canuckistanian]

8. "The biggest scandal in the history of the world" ????

Bush*'s Halliburton cronies spill more than that at lunch...

[TankLV]

9. The headline is very misleading - the UN did NOTHING wrong - it was some

UNIDENTIFIED (US? Halliburton? Cheney?) CORPORATIONS that did the "bilking" - not the UN.