A Ban on Laziness

UN Secretary General, Ban Ki-Moon(pictured left), has publicly chided the UN for being too lazy, managerially inefficient, and opaque. 'There is bureaucracy...and then there is the UN', he said at a news conference today. The UN has long been derided, especially by the US, which provides much of the UN's funding, as being inefficient and a waste of time and money. Ban entered the highest position in the UN on a platform of reform and streamlining, a realistic, moderate turn after Kofi Annan's lofty goals. 

It is not difficult to see why Ban Ki-Moon is frustrated. Coming from a culture that espouses diligence and the importance of bureaucracy, Ban now has to deal with one of the most bloated organisations in existence, a haven for sinecure 'sub-committees' and fruitless talking shops. Ban Ki-Moon's goal of seeing the UN 're-energised, re-charged and full of motivation and full of creativity and versatility' is a noble one. Newspapers and UN spokespeople who accused Ban Ki-Moon of admitting failure are missing the point. It is not about admitting failure, it's about being disappointed with a lack of progress.

Another comment of Ban's that was taken out of context was during his speech on August 29, where he stated 'I tried to lead by example. Nobody followed.' Critics have been declaring this an admission that Ban Ki-Moon lacks authority. Perhaps they should remember that Mr. Ban also comes from a culture that encourages kicking people in the face.