Annan's son paid for 4 more years in oil-for-food programme:UN

UNITED NATIONS, NOVEMBER 27 (PTI)

The United Nations has admitted that the son of Secretary-General Kofi Annan received payments for four more years than previously disclosed from a Swizz firm under the UN oil-for-food programme, a deal which is now under the scanner for alleged corruption.
The Geneva based firm Cotecna, which was given a multimillion dollar contract to oversee delivery of goods Iraq brought through the UN-brokered programme, paid Kojo Anann USD 2,500 a month beginning January, 2000 till February this year, a UN spokesman said yesterday.
The United Nations had earlier said that the payment had stopped in December 1999.
No charges of illegality have been made out against Annan junior, but what embarrassed the world body was that it had to admit that its earlier statement was wrong.
Kojo Annan received payments under an open no-compete contract and there is nothing illegal about it, Chief UN spokesman Fred Eckhard.
The independent Volcker panel investigating allegations of corruption in the UN-run oil-for-food programme had been told about the payments and it is now for the panel to determine whether any irregularities had been committed, he said.
Corporations often enter into no-compete contract with employees who leave them to ensure that they do not set up competing outfits.. In return for payments, the employee promises not to set up any company or business which directly competes with them, he said.