UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan and the Security Council were criticized on Wednesday for mismanagement and corruption in the UN-run oil-for-food program in Iraq, and Annan said he took his share of the responsibility.

"Our assignment has been to look for mis- or maladministration in the oil-for-food program and for evidence of corruption within the UN organization and by contractors. Unhappily, we found both," Paul Volcker, former US Federal Reserve chairman, told the Security Council.

Volcker is the head of an independent inquiry committee set up in April last year by Annan to look into the alleged mismanagement and corruption in the US$67 billion of oil-for-food program. He briefed the council Wednesday morning on his panel's 1,000-page final report on the probe.

"In essence, the responsibility for the failures must be broadly shared, starting we believe with member states and the Security Council itself," he said.

Citing a failure to clearly define the administrative responsibilities between the Security Council and the UN Secretariat, he said, "The result was no one seemed clearly in command (of the program). Delays in, or evasion of, decision-making was chronic."

After Volcker's speech, Annan took the floor, voicing his readiness to assume the responsibility for the failings revealed by the inquiry team, which spent 34 million dollars on the investigation.

"As chief administrative officer, I have to take responsibility for the failings revealed, both in the implementation of the program and, more generally, in the functioning of the Secretariat," he said.

He also expressed his acceptance of the inquiry panel's criticism over his failure to pursue effective investigation into Cotecna, a Swiss company which employed his son, Kojo Annan. The company obtained a contract under the oil-for-food program.

"The report is critical of me personally, and I accept its criticism," he said, adding that he was glad to note the panel reaffirmed its earlier conclusion that he did not influence the procurement process.

Annan said that the sole purpose of initiating independent investigation into the scandal is to uncover the truth. "I was convinced that only by revealing the full truth, however painful, could the United Nations regain its credibility, and establish what changes were needed."

"The findings in today's report must be deeply embarrassing to us all," he said. "The Inquiry Committee has ripped away the curtain, and shone a harsh light into the most unsightly corners of our organization."

He urged world governments to learn the lessons drawn from the oil-for-food program and throw their weight behind his proposal for reforming the UN management.

"None of us -- member states or Secretariat, agencies, funds or programs -- can be proud of what it has found. Who among us can now claim that UN management is not a problem, or is not in need of reform?" he asked.

In his address to the council, Algerian Ambassador to the United Nations Abdallah Baali echoed Volcker's conclusion that the Security Council should share the blame for the oil-for-food scandal.

"The Security Council in fact has a real share of responsibility for problems encountered in this program because it was the council that was monitoring and following the sanctions (over Iraq)," he said.

Baali also voiced his backing for the beleaguered UN chief. "The secretary-general as of today is perceived as a diplomat and political person who has responsibility, this is how he is perceived rather than as a manager. And proper tribute is paid to him for the work he does on the political and diplomatic fronts."

"We have every trust in him," Baali stressed.

The oil-for-food program, which started in December 1996, allowed Iraq to export oil to mitigate the impact of the harsh UN sanctions on Iraqis. The United Nations oversaw Iraq's oil sales and its purchase of humanitarian supplies. The program was shut down in November.

Benon Sevan, former head of the UN office in charge of running the program, and several UN officials were accused by Volcker's panel of taking kickbacks and bribes from contractors.

(Xinhua News Agency September 8, 2005)