By our reporter| The bureau of board of governors of the African Development Bank Group on Wednesday constituted a panel to conduct an independent review of the report of the ethics committee on the allegations made by whistleblowers against the president of the bank, Akinwumi Adesina.
According to communiqué released by the bureau, the board
agreed on the terms of reference for the independent review at its meetings of June 18 and July 1, 2020.
It, thereafter, selected three persons—Mary Robinson, Hassan B. Jallow and Leonard F. McCarthy—to constitute “a High-Level Panel of Independent Experts to conduct the said review”.
The communiqué, signed by Niale Kaba, Governor for Côte d’Ivoire, noted that the bureau expresses its utmost trust and confidence in the panel’s ability to successfully carry out the assignment and reaffirms its commitment to fully assisting the panel in the process.
The panel is expected to submit its report to the bureau within a period of two to four weeks maximum, the communiqué said.
It will be recalled that earlier this year, a group of whistleblowers, had in a petition accused Adesina of breaching the bank’s code of conduct, including “unethical conduct, private gain, an impediment to efficiency, preferential treatment, and involvement in political activities.”
The group, which noted their allegations were in line with AfDB’s whistleblowing policy, said these activities adversely affected the confidence and integrity of the bank.
The bank, however, found the allegations to be “frivolous” and thus cleared Mr Adesina but the United States government, one of the biggest shareholders of the bank rejected the report.
It expressed “deep reservations about the integrity of the committee’s process” and called for a fresh “in-depth investigation of the allegations.”
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