Instead, the group says that candidates for the post should be subjected to the same rigorous selection and interview process faced by managers in other intergovernmental bodies.
In a letter sent to the permanent representatives of each of the member states of the World Intellectual Property Organization, a group calling itself Cincinnatus said that the appointment of a new director-general to replace Kamil Idris, who will step down in September, should be made in the “best interests of the Organization”.
In November last year, Idris agreed to leave his post a year earlier than planned, after the leaking of a report prepared by WIPO’s Internal Audit and Oversight Division that concluded that Idris had misled officials about his age.
In the nine months since the contents of the report had circulated on the internet, Idris had come under increasing pressure from some member states to respond to the allegations or to resign.
This is not the first letter to be sent by the self-named Cincinnatus group, which claims to include staff that come from different parts of WIPO and who represent different nationalities, races and religions.
In October, it sent an open letter to Idris in which it said: “We want to hereby call upon your sense of honor, your common sense and your magnanimity, that we know so well. Don't listen to those who advise you stubbornly to stick to a go-for-broke approach like a kamikaze.” It added: “Only one solution can bring this Organization out of this tragic crisis. Immediately. And you know what it is.”
In its latest letter, the group says that member states – who will designate a new director-general in May – have the Organization’s future “in their hands”.
“[The new director-general] will have to put our organization back on track. Restore a relationship of confidence with its staff and with its Member States. Reestablish the reputation of the Organization. Thoroughly restructure its staffing table. And many other matters...” says the letter, a copy of which was received by MIP Week.
“We do not have the right to vote but we are nonetheless entitled to delineate the profile of that providential person for whom we have been waiting so long to stand up to the challenges of the Organization. And to help you in a selection that, this time around, must not be solely geographical or political.”
Cincinnatus goes on to say that member states should consider hiring a headhunter to identify potential leaders. In particular, it says that the hiring process should be overhauled so that the Organization sets out a precise definition of the competences required by would-be applicants, establishes a committee to draw up a shortlist of candidates and a system to verify information provided by the candidates, requires candidates to provide a written plan of action setting out their vision for WIPO, and conduct interviews.
The letter also sets out some model questions that candidates could be required to address in their written applications: How do they see WIPO and its role during their incumbency? What do they intend to reform as a matter of priority? How do they intend to do it? By what means? How do they intend to gain the support of the staff? Do they have a track record as managers?
It concludes: “One last word. On the inside, one can sense an immense and irrepressible yearning for action and a higher profile for WIPO. In other words, for complete change. This will require courage and innovation. The appointment of a new Director General of WIPO is entirely your responsibility. In consequence, you will be accountable for it.”
The process of appointing a new director-general was set out in a letter sent by Hilda Skorpen, the chair of the Coordination Committee, to member states and WIPO employees in November last year.
Each member state can propose the name of one of its nationals as a candidate for nomination by the WIPO Coordination Committee.
Once all the nominations have been received, member states will be notified of the names. The Coordination Committee will then be convened on May 13 and 14 for an extraordinary session and by the end of it Idris’s successor will be appointed. He/she will officially take over at this year’s General Assembly at the end of September.
So far, only one candidate’s name has been confirmed. The Brazilian government last week said it will be nominating José Graça-Aranha, the director of WIPO’s International Registrations Department, as its candidate for the post.
Member states have until 5pm on February 13 to nominate other candidates for the position.
