UN Official Resigns Ahead of Oil-for-food Report

A senior United Nations official, Benon Sevan, yesterday became the highest-profile victim of the Iraq oil-for-food scandal.

He resigned ahead of an internal report to be published later today by Paul Volcker, head of the investigation into the scandal.

The UN has been left in disarray for months by the inquiry, which began in April last year. Mr Volcker is investigating mismanagement by the UN of a humanitarian operation intended to help the Iraqi population when Saddam Hussein was in power.

Mr Sevan, in a letter of resignation, claimed he was being made the fall guy. "As I predicted, a high-profile investigative body invested with absolute power would feel compelled to target someone and that someone turned out to be me," he said.

He was in charge of the programme in which Saddam was allowed to sell some of Iraq's oil to pay for food imports. Mr Volcker is investigating whether individuals and companies benefited improperly from the programme.

Mr Sevan has been in limbo since being named by an interim report by Mr Volcker's investigation last year. Mr Sevan had been kept on the UN payroll for a nominal a dollar a year.

Mr Volcker is due to publish his final report either at the end of this month or early next month. The report today is to tie up loose ends from earlier interim reports.

The investigation has criticised Kojo Annan, son of the UN secretary general, Kofi Annan. Kojo's company Cotecna secured one of the oil-for-food contracts.

The secretary general, although denying any knowledge of his son's involvement at the time, has been undermined by the inquiry.

The final report is scheduled to be published at one of the worst possible times for Mr Annan, who is due to retire at the end of next year. If Mr Volcker delivers on time, the report threatens to overshadow a special UN summit beginning on September 14, to be attended by heads of government, to discuss UN reform and meeting goals for reducing poverty.