Former UN chief proposed as new Chair of IOC’s Ethics Commission

Ban Ki-moon, a former United Nations (UN) Secretary-General, has been proposed as the new Chair of the Ethics Commission of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) by the committee’s Executive Board.


This proposal will now be put for vote to the full membership at the IOC Session in Lima, Peru in September, a statement by the IOC Media Department indicated on Wednesday.

Under the reforms of Olympic Agenda 2020, the Chair of the IOC Ethics Commission and all of its members are elected by the full IOC membership at the IOC Session.

The statement said if approved, Ban would replace the current Chair, Youssoupha Ndiaye, a former President of Constitutional Court of Senegal, who is standing down at the end of this IOC Session.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Ban was the eighth Secretary-General of the UN, from January 2007 to December 2016.

The statement said when he assumed office, he committed the UN to the highest standards of ethics, integrity, accountability and transparency.

“One of his first actions was to introduce a code of ethics to the organisation, which applied to all employees.

“An Ethics Committee was established to devise `a unified set of standards and policies’ for the entire UN system,” it read.

The statement further read that Ban is a strong proponent of enhancing the role of sports to address global challenges.

“He oversaw the inclusion of `sport as an important enabler’ in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), part of the UN’s 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development,” it added.

The statement quoted Ban as saying at the IOC Session in Sochi in 2014 that “Olympic principles are United Nations principles’’.

“He ran twice with the Olympic Torch, at the 2016 Rio Olympic Games and at the 2014 Olympic Winter Games in Sochi, to demonstrate the unique power of sports as a global force for good.’’

While commenting on the idea to appoint Ban, Thomas Bach, the IOC President, said: “The IOC is honoured and pleased that Mr Ban accepted for his name to be put forward.

“On the one hand, he has an exemplary record of public service with integrity, accountability and transparency. On the other hand, he is a great friend of the Olympic Movement.”

Ban, in his reaction, also said: `I am deeply honoured to be nominated as the Chair of the IOC’s Ethics Commission and accept the position with a sense of humility and responsibility.

“The United Nations and the International Olympic Committee have had a close working relationship over many years with both organisations contributing to building a peaceful and better world.

“In working closely under the principles of the IOC movement, I will do my best to enhance the accountability and transparency of the IOC,” the statement read.