Backstabbing For Beginners

By Laurence Washington, Special to the Rocky

Published January 1, 2009 at 6 p.m.
Updated January 1, 2009 at 7:05 p.m.

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* Nonfiction. By Michael Soussan. Nation Books, $25.95. Grade: A

Book in a nutshell: In 1997, Soussan was an idealistic college graduate offered a position of a lifetime: to work for the most idealistic organization in the world - the United Nations. As a program coordinator for the U.N. Oil for Food program, Soussan's duties included oversight of Iraqi oil revenues earmarked for humanitarian aid (food and medicine) to help Iraqi civilians who were victims of U.S. sanctions against Saddam Hussein.

Soussan works with an array of colorful characters, including a sex-starved, middle-aged manager and a moody boss nicknamed Pasha who blurts out barely audible sentences in an accent (or what Soussan decides might be a speech impediment).

As Soussan sets about his task of processing $10 billion contracts, he soon becomes disillusioned. The organization is plagued by internal fighting, with staffers arguing about what kind of food the Iraqi people should eat. Worse, Soussan discovers massive corruption, as Iraqi officials use front companies to receive goods through the U.N. program. These companies then resell the goods to Iraq at inflated prices, and give kickbacks to state officials.

Fearful of losing their jobs, U.N. employees ignore the endemic fraud - until finally, on March 8, 2004, Soussan writes an op-ed piece in The Wall Street Journal calling for an investigation. The piece results in hundreds of prosecutions in multiple countries, some of which are ongoing.

Best tidbit: Soussan receives a frantic phone call one night from Habibi, a co-worker who just escaped a Mrs. Robinson scenario from his supervisor Cindy Spikes, Pasha's special assistant and official office man-eater. After drinking margaritas at a local bar, the 40ish woman had lured Habibi up to her apartment and tried to force him to perform oral sex. The next day, Soussan stops by Spikes' office to let her know that he knows, quipping, "I hear the margaritas are pretty stiff at that Mexican bar."

Pros: Soussan's sharp sense for detail turns what could have been a run-of-the-mill scandal story into a rousing tale peppered with black humor and satirical anecdotes.

Cons: Sensitive readers might be offended by Soussan's free use of blue language.

Final word: An insightful look at how even an organization like the idealistic U.N. is not immune to political hypocrisy and double dealings.

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