Okay, put me in pun jail and never let me out… But just reading the following in the WaPo put me in a giddy mood: A U.N.-established inquiry into corruption in the $64 billion oil-for-food program will accuse the defunct program’s director, Benon V. Sevan, of receiving cash kickbacks for steering lucrative Iraqi oil contracts to an Egyptian oil trader, according to Sevan’s lawyer.
Former U.S. Federal Reserve chairman Paul A. Volcker, who is heading the independent inquiry committee, is to release a third interim report Tuesday that the lawyer, Eric L. Lewis, said in a statement will also charge Sevan, of Cyprus, with refusing to cooperate.
Progress from the Volcker Committee at last. Of course the lawyer is getting out front by saying his client is taking the heat for others (who could that be?):
Lewis said Sevan is being made a scapegoat to deflect criticism of Secretary General Kofi Annan. Lewis said that the charges, which were outlined in a confidential letter from the Volcker committee to Sevan last week, are “flatly false” and that he is going public to get his client’s side of the story out before Volcker issues the report. “Mr. Sevan never took anything from anyone,” he said.
If you don’t count the Iraqi people. (ht: Rick Ballard)
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7 Comments
1. Katherine:ìProgress from the Volcker Committee at last.î
And Bolton on the job only one day.
Perhaps Lileks was correct http://www.newhousenews.com/archive/lileks080305.html
Aug 4, 2005 - 6:20 pm 2. Charlie (Colorado):Nah, that’s only a 1 on the George Bernard Shaw scale.
Aug 4, 2005 - 6:37 pm 3. Rick Ballard:On Feb. 4, Mark Malloch Brown, speaking for Kofi Annan said:
On Feb. 15 Sen. Norm Coleman said:
Today, Sevan still holds immunity and on Aug. 9, when Volcker issues his report, Don Kofi needs to either pull that immunity or learn to live with an even larger Pinocchio nose. Elliot Spitzer may get his chance after all if the Volcker committee has standing as a UN entity to make a claim of material damage having occured as the result of Sevan taking the bribe.
Let’s hope Spitzer gets an indictment out prior to the September Kofi clatch.
Aug 4, 2005 - 6:57 pm 4. PJ:If you don’t count Sevan’s aunt.
Aug 4, 2005 - 7:21 pm 5. Peter Boston:Don Kofi (I love that) danced around with the French and the Hutus keeping his cranium rectally inverted while a million were slaughtered in Rawanda. For this he got kicked upstairs to get a shot at the really big bucks. Pigs will spacewalk before Kofi Anan does anything that might jeopordize his sinecure.
Aug 5, 2005 - 5:47 am 6. PJ:Bolton also ‘insulted’ Syria and Iran on his first day at the new job! The looks on their faces as he ripped into them.
I think I’m falling in love…
Aug 5, 2005 - 8:37 am 7. Terrye:I hope Bolton keeps on insulting them and I hope some of these greasy upscale thives at the UN go to jail.
Aug 5, 2005 - 12:09 pm