Former U.N. Procurement Head Threatens To Sue Ex-Boss

By Benny Avni 
October 16, 2007
New York Sun 
Original Source: http://www.nysun.com/article/64617 http://www.nysun.com/article/64617


UNITED NATIONS — Far from being intimidated by an investigation into corruption at the department he once headed, a former U.N. procurement chief is threatening to launch a civil lawsuit against his one-time boss, Christopher Burnham.

Andrew Toh, a Singaporean national, says he is not guilty of any wrongdoing and claims Mr. Burnham subjected him to harassment and discrimination. But U.N. officials say the investigation of Mr. Toh will go on and that Secretary-General Ban will not lift Mr. Burnham's immunity against prosecution before the inquiry concludes, or before a court action ensues.

Hanging in the balance is the fate of a task force established in January 2006 at the urging of Mr. Burnham, who was then U. N. undersecretary-general for management. The team launched an investigation into alleged wrongdoing in the department charged with procurement of goods for U.N. operations around the world, led by Mr. Toh.

In an October 5 report, the task force identified significant fraud and corruption schemes in tainted contracts valued at least at $610 million, almost half the value of all the contracts that were examined. Nevertheless, some U.N. member states, including reportedly Singapore, are now urging Mr. Ban to dissolve the task force as soon as its current funding runs out, at the end of the year.

I was cleared of corruption and any improper financial dealings, Mr. Toh told The New York Sun yesterday in an e-mail message. I have requested the Secretary-General to lift the immunity of Burnham in order to file suit against him in a civil court.

There can be no question of lifting immunity when no judicial proceedings have been instituted, a U.N. source, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said. In several cases — including one involving a subordinate of Mr. Toh's, Sanjaya Bahel — the immunity from prosecution that international civil servants have was removed after criminal proceedings were launched, the source added, and the secretary-general has never lifted the immunity in a lawsuit involving an employment grievance.

U.N. officials yesterday also contradicted Mr. Toh's assertion that he has been cleared. The case remains within the U.N.'s own internal justice system, a U.N. spokeswoman, Michele Montas, told the Sun. It is very important for the integrity of this process that it be allowed to proceed without interference. According to the task force's October 5 report, Mr. Toh improperly endorsed a $57 million contract for electrical services at the United Nations' New York headquarters. He also failed to address issues related to a tainted $33 million manpower contract despite being repeatedly made aware of those issues, the report said. The procurement officer who supervised the manpower contract, Bahel, was recently convicted at the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York of bribery and other crimes and is awaiting sentencing.

Mr. Toh called the task force's conclusions allegations that are false and could not be substantiated. Instead, he said two U.N. panels have concluded that he was subject to harassment, discrimination, denial of due process, intimidation, and overall abuse of authority by the task force and by Mr. Burnham.

The most significant of those findings, by a U.N. General Assembly body known as the Joint Disciplinary Committee, is only a recommendation, according to the U.N. official who spoke on condition of anonymity. Mr. Ban has the option to accept or reject that recommendation, the official said, adding that the secretary-general could make such a determination as early as today. The task force, which has no subpoena power, said Mr. Toh did not fully comply with the secretary-general's instructions to disclose his finances, including bank accounts and real estate holdings.

The report calls for the termination of the contract of anyone failing to cooperate with investigations. Mr. Toh said that at issue was his home in Singapore, which he did not know he needed to declare, and a London bank account he set up for his daughter.

Mr. Burnham, who left the United Nations at the end of 2006 to work in the private sector, declined to comment on Mr. Toh's threatened lawsuit.

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