DESA's new corruption case might turn into another nightmare for Ban Ki-moon

Spokesperson's Noon Briefing

http://www.un.org/News/briefings/docs//2009/db090828.doc.htm

Question: Can I just ask you one question. There is a pretty detailed report out about a UN employee, Bruno Bastet and that he was receiving welfare housing payments in France while living in New York in a condominium and he was also receiving rental subsidy from the UN. I wanted to just ask two things about it. I wanted to ask first, why does the UN or what is the Secretariat’s thinking on paying rental subsidy to people that actually own, you know extremely expensive apartments? They don’t get rental subsidy if they live in the apartment they own. But, if they rent it out to others and rent another apartment, then they receive rental subsidy. Does this seem reasonable to the Secretariat or…?

Spokesperson: Well, this is a matter, you know, as concerned that matter, you know the matter of the staff member’s rental subsidy, in the case of Mr. Bastet, that could be reviewed through the UN internal process to determine the accuracy and completeness of any statement and claims submitted by Mr. Basted. So, that’s what I can say. In terms of the actual, I can get some additional information for you on rental subsidies, but usually rental subsidies are given for a certain number of years to staff members coming into the system, and they are done according to the statements made by the staff member. [The rental subsidy declines gradually over a seven-year period, so that eventually the staff member must adjust fully to the local market.] And you can get, of course, full information on this. I think you can find this on our website, about the policy on subsidies.

Question: What I mean, because I think Marie was asked about it yesterday, because she is quoted in this report and she says it’s entirely legal for a UN official to own property, but nonetheless apply for rental subsidy to live elsewhere. And I guess I am just asking, you know, whatever the specifics of Mr. Bastet is, does that policy make sense that… Is the purpose of the rental subsidy to give it to somebody that can own, that only lives in rental housing? Or does this create an incentive to actually, as they say, build a real estate empire? Like somebody could own three buildings and still be getting a rental subsidy from the UN. Is that…?

Spokesperson: I’ll try to forward that question for you to the people in charge.