Statement by Ambassador Amjad Hussain B. Sial, Deputy Permanent Representative of Pakistan on Agenda Item 140: Report On The OIOS Ativities and IAAC Annual Report, New York (7 October 2009)

Mr. Chairman,

  1. Pakistan delegation would like to thank Under-Secretary-General for Internal Oversight Services (OIOS) for the presentation and timely submission of the comprehensive report on OIOS Activities for the period from 1 July 2008 to 30 June 2009, contained in document A/64/326 Part-I and the related addendum. We also thank Department of Management for introducing the Secretary-General's comments to the OIOS report, as contained in Addendum-II of said document.
  2. We also thank Mr. David Walker, Chairperson of the Independent Audit Advisory Committee (IAAC), for introducing the second annual report of the IAAC, as contained in document A/64/288.
  3. My delegation aligns itself with the statement made by the distinguished representative of Sudan on behalf of the Group of 77 and China.
  4. While we generally agree with the contents of the reports, we have some specific points to make.
  5. We attach great importance to the internal and external oversight function of the Organization because of the huge amount that Member States pay for both regular budget and peacekeeping operations of the United Nations. We should deliberate on measures for strengthening the oversight function.
  6. We have seen in the reports of both OIOS and IAAC, suggestions on the issue of selection and appointment of OIOS staff. In our view, the issue has been settled in paragraph 19 of resolution 54/244, in which the General Assembly has emphasized that the recruitment and promotion of staff of the OIOS shall be in accordance with the provisions of the Charter, the relevant resolutions and decisions of the General Assembly and Staff Regulations and the Rules of the Organization, taking into account Article 101, paragraph 3 of the Charter.
  7. The Secretary General being the Chief Administrative Officer, assisted by his able Human Resources Management team, should continue to perform this function of recruitment and promotion of the UN staff, including the OIOS staff. However, in view of the specialized nature of the OIOS work, they may be associated with the process of selection of the OIOS staff and the Secretary General should remain the final authority in this regard.
  8. We have to fully respect and implement the provisions of Article 97 and Article 101 of the UN Charter. We should not deviate from these fundamental principles.

    Mr. Chairman,

  9. We fully support and uphold the principle of operational independence for OIOS. As regards issues raised by OIOS & IAAC in this context, we would like to state that paragraph 5(a) of resolution 48/218 B explicitly mentions that OIOS shall exercise operational independence under the authority of the Secretary General in the conduct of its duties and, in accordance with Article 97 of the Charter, have the authority to initiate, carry out and report on any action which it considers necessary to fulfill its responsibilities with regard to monitoring, internal audit, inspection and evaluation and investigations as set fourth in the resolution. Furthermore, the General Assembly in paragraph 18 of its resolution 54/244 emphasized that operational independence of the OIOS is related to the performance of internal oversight functions. As it has been reported by the OIOS, the Secretary General has also issued internal instructions on the operational independence of OIOS.
  10. It is our well considered view that the General Assembly has enunciated operational independence of the OIOS in explicit terms, which is under the authority of the United Nations Secretary General, as required under Article 97 of the UN Charter. Now it is an internal matter between the Secretary General and the Under-Secretary-General of the OIOS to decide how to operationalize these decisions of the General Assembly and provisions of the UN Charter. My delegation would not like to suggest anything beyond that as it would amount to micromanagement of the UN Secretariat.

    Mr. Chairman,

  11. In the context of review of General Assembly resolutions on OIOS, we wish to point out that there seems to be some inherent contradiction in paragraphs 1 and 3 of resolution 59/272. In paragraph 1 it was decided to maintain the reporting procedure as enumerated in resolutions 48/218 B and 54/244, wherein it is provided that the reports of OIOS will be submitted to the Secretary General, who will transmit them to the General Assembly for consideration and action. Whereas, in paragraph 3 of resolution 59/272 it was decided that the reports of OIOS shall be submitted directly to the General Assembly. We need to re-visit and review this issue for ensuring clarity and conformity with Article 97 of the UN Charter read in conjunction with Article 98 of the Charter.

    Mr. Chairman,

  12. The second point on resolution 59/272 is access to those OIOS reports that are not submitted to the General Assembly. In our view all OIOS reports that are finalized should be submitted to the General Assembly without any exception, for the sake of transparency. Those which are not submitted to the General Assembly are an internal matter of the Secretariat. The request by Member States for access to those reports would be too intrusive and amount to interference in the internal matters of the Secretariat. In this regard we agree with the observations of IAAC in paragraph 40 of its report. We would caution that there is no question of discretion in submitting certain reports to the General Assembly and withholding some. We need to reflect further on this aspect as well.

    Mr. Chairman,

  13. The General Assembly in its resolution 59/272 paragraph 5, had noted that no mechanism was established for follow-up of the OIOS recommendations. In this context the Assembly had requested the Secretary General to establish a mechanism on the criteria mentioned in paragraph 10 (a)-(d) of the resolution 59/272. We have noted that OIOS annual report has provided some information about improving the system of implementation of its recommendation. However, we would like to be informed by the Secretary General about the progress in respect of establishment of the mechanism called for by the General Assembly.

    Mr. Chairman,

  14. We agree with the views of IAAC and OIOS that adequate resources should be provided for effective and efficient internal oversight function. The external oversight function is equally important, which should also be provided adequate resources. We would, however, like to underline that this should not be done at the cost of other programmes.

    Mr. Chairman,

  15. We are extremely concerned to learn about the fact that there is no accountability framework in the Secretariat. It is highly surprising indeed that an Organization dealing with budget of over US$ 12 billion is functioning without such a mechanism. It is not solely the responsibility of oversight bodies to enforce accountability in the Secretariat. There has to be a system in place for ensuring that the programme managers are held accountable for their functioning. The role of the oversight bodies is to assist and facilitate the process of accountability.

    Mr. Chairman,

  16. We attach great importance to harmony and complimentarity among internal and external oversight bodies. Due attention should be paid to ensuring frugal use of meager resources and avoiding duplication of work.

    Mr. Chairman,

  17. I would like to draw your attention to the resolution 63/248 on Pattern of Conferences Section IV, paragraphs 7-8, in which the General Assembly reiterated its request to the Secretary General to direct all departments of the Secretariat to include in their reports; a summary of the report; consolidated conclusions, recommendations, proposed actions, relevant background information; and actionable parts in bold print. We expect that OIOS will also strictly comply with the General Assembly resolution on the format of reports.

Thank you