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We leave it to visitors and readers to judge for themselves the views from the defenders of 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB):
"SCORNED & SPURNED, ROSMAH CAMP TURNS NASTY: BADMOUTHS UNESCO CHIEF IRINA BOKOVA FOR NOT DEFENDING HER, ACCUSES UN OF CORRUPTION
Politics | September 22, 2016 by | 0 Comments
This statement (below) smacks of sour grapism from the former UN Adviser on Ethics. What relevance has the decision by UNESCO to defer its decision to award for her work in countering extremism through an educational system initiated by Permata to do with USForeign Policy and UN corruption, I wonder.
Tunku Aziz, in his capacity as MACC Commissioner, should look at corruption in our own backyard as typified by Rosmah Mansor and her pliable Prime Minister husband before commenting on the United Nations, his previous employer.
I was told that Tunku Aziz was engaged by then Secretary-General Kofi Annan to be his ethics adviser as a favour to Tan Sri Razali Ismail, who was then President, United Nations General Assembly. Lord Mark Malloch Brown, Kofi Annan’s Deputy, ought to know Tunku Aziz well.–Din Merican
Is Irina Bokova fit for the world’s most demanding diplomatic job?
“Datin Seri Rosmah has earned, by her dignified reaction, the admiration of right-thinking Malaysians who appreciate and value her commitment to the fight against violent extremism through the right system of education…World recognition of the sort we have just seen is not worth bothering about; the true reward is reflected in the well being and happiness of the children right here in Malaysia who are being given an opportunity to become good national and, by extension, world citizens. A thought has crossed my mind”.–Tunku Abdul Aziz
Corruption is no stranger to the UN System.
When I was appointed in 2006 as the Secretary-General’s Special Adviser, following a UN resolution to set up an Ethics Office at the UN Headquarters in New York, I began for the first time to realise the pervasiveness of corruption that had taken hold of this organisation in spite of Kofi Annan’s strenuous efforts..
The Iraq Oil for Food Programme was just one small example; there were others relating to the UN Peace-Keeping-Operations that would make the most laid-back and sanguine among us sit up and be jolted into a sense of outrage and indignation.
It is institutional moral arrogance that is at the heart of the problem.
As far as the UN and its multifarious agencies are concerned, while corruption is not officially tolerated, confronting it seriously is discouraged as that might demoralise the staff numbering in their thousands.
That is the kind of argument that has sustained this unwieldy, arrogant and insufferably complacent organisation for much of its near irrelevant existence.
It is fair to say that the UN has given international organisations as a whole an unsavoury reputation.
So, it came as no surprise to learn that in its typical bumbling, merry way, Unesco, co-host of Sep 22, 2016 event since deferred to 2017 to honour Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor for her work in countering extremism through an educational system initiated by Permata that she set up in 2007, has seen fit to allow the advisory board of the organising committee to be swayed by what its chairman Professor Tudor Parfitt describes as “interventions” by the Wall Street Journal and the New York Times.
Lest we forget, these were the self-same newspapers that proclaimed shrilly that Iraq had weapons of mass destruction even as a group of UN appointed weapons inspectors declared that no such weapons existed.
That did not stop Iraq being attacked by war mongering criminal George Bush.
The consequences of the US war, sanctified by nothing more compelling than rotten lies and subterfuge were, in the event, counted in the millions of innocent Iraqi victims.
Look around the Muslim world to see what American democracy has done.
Tunku Aziz doubts Irina Bokova will have the moral authority to stand up to the US bullying.
The decision to review the award to Datin Seri Rosmah is a sad commentary on the credibility of Professor Tudor Parfitt and his committee.
They are pathetically malleable and easily persuaded to take this ethically unprecedented action on pure speculative, unsubstantiated reports by two newspapers whose less than rigorous professional standards are a matter of international public record.
My brickbat is reserved for Unesco director-general, Irina Bokova, UN secretary-general aspirant, whose diplomatic skills are in serious question as a result of her inept handling of this affair, and her judgment is highly suspect.
I very much doubt whether she will ever have the moral authority to lead the world organisation by standing up, like Kofi Annan did, to US bullying.
I suppose she has come from the same mould as the outgoing Mr Ban, the man who has led a moribund UN during his unremarkable leadership.
Bokova who has shown a complete lack of sound diplomatic skills cannot surely be entrusted to carry out the duties of the world’s most difficult diplomatic job.
Datin Seri Rosmah has earned, by her dignified reaction, the admiration of right-thinking Malaysians who appreciate and value her commitment to the fight against violent extremism through the right system of education.
World recognition of the sort we have just seen is not worth bothering about; the true reward is reflected in the wellbeing and happiness of the children right here in Malaysia who are being given an opportunity to become good national and, by extension, world citizens.
A thought has crossed my mind.
If Unesco is so fastidious about how kosher the funding of Permata is, then maybe, just maybe, the United Nations Organisation would wish to reject Malaysia’s annual assessed contribution.
Just a thought as I said.
WRITER: `
– http://www.malaysiaoutlook.com/"
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