Ban Ki-moon, the new United Nations secretary-general, swore his oath of office on Thursday with a pledge to restore ethics and efficiency to the organisation’s scandal-ridden administration.
“One of my core tasks will be to breathe new life and inject renewed confidence into the sometimes weary secretariat,” he told the UN’s general assembly.
“I will seek to set the highest ethical standard . . . to enhance morale, professionalism and accountability amongst staff members.”
It appeared a tough indictment of the tenure of Kofi Annan, who leaves at the end of December, even as new reports emerged of alleged corruption in the UN’s department of economic and social affairs.
Mr Ban said Mr Annan had given the UN “new relevance to people’s lives”, and that his tenure had been marked by “high ideals, noble aspirations and bold initiatives. Your courage and vision have inspired the world”.
But the former South Korean foreign minister’s eulogy was tempered by a call to “restore trust in the organisation”, in apparent reference to the shadow cast by the oil-for-food affair and other scandals.
“The good name of the United Nations is one of its most valuable assets, but also one of its most vulnerable,” Mr Ban said. “The charter calls on staff to uphold the highest levels of efficiency, competence and integrity, and I will seek to ensure we build a solid reputation for living up to that standard. I assure you I will lead by example.”
It remains unclear exactly how Mr Ban will go about this task. In two months of talks, he has revealed little. One western diplomat said he has been in “receive mode, not transmit mode”.
One of his main challenges will be to curb developing-country scepticism of calls for UN reform, which many see as an attempt to erode the influence of poor countries.
The quiet Korean acknowledged by asking, in French, for a new type of relationship between the secretariat and the member states. “The old habits of mistrust and indifference have lasted too long,” he said.
Mr Ban, who cast himself as a “harmoniser and bridge-builder”, chose not to refer to the UN’s big political challenges. Darfur, Iran, and the Middle East went unmentioned. But he did ask for more equity in international relations.
“Our public will not long respect an organisation, or tolerate a secretary-general, who caters to some, while ignoring the desperate plight of others,” he said.
One of his first decisions will be to name a deputy, probably a woman from the developing world.
