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United Nations Office of Internal Oversight Services (UN OIOS) 19 Jul 2006 report titled "Report on Mr. Walter Cabrera [PTF-R001-06]" relating to the Procurement Task Force. The report runs to 12 printed pages.

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United Nations Office of Internal Oversight Services

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 United Nations                        Nations Unies

OFFICE OF INTERNAL OVERSIGHT SERVICES
      PROCUREMENT TASK FORCE
    This Report is protected under the provisions of
   ST/SGB/273, paragraph 18, of 7 September 1994


           REPORT ON
      MR. WALTER CABRERA

            Report no. PTF-R001/06

                Case no. PTF/026/06




          STRICTLY CONFIDENTIAL




                    19 July 2006


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OIOS PROCUREMENT TASK FORCE
REPORT ON WALTER CABRERA
STRICTLY CONFIDENTIAL
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________


This is a report dealing with the matters raised (1) in the audit report
dated 26 January 2006 PD/155/02 and (2) raised in other referrals
concerning Mr. Walter Cabrera, procurement officer, Headquarters
Procurement Section, at relevant times.

      The following sets forth the findings of the Procurement Task Force
concerning United Nations staff member Walter Cabrera.

        INTRODUCTION

       The Procurement Task Force was created on January 12, 2006 to
address all procurement matters referred to the Office of Internal Oversight
Services (OIOS). The creation of the Task Force was the result of perceived
problems in procurement identified by the Independent Inquiry Committee
into the Oil for Food Programme (IIC), and the arrest and conviction of UN
procurement officer Alexander Yakovlev.

         Under its Terms of Reference, the Task Force operates as part of
OIOS, and reports directly to the Under Secretary General of OIOS. The
remit of the Task Force is to investigate all open and pending procurement
cases, including all matters involving the procurement bidding exercises,
procurement staff, and vendors doing business with the United Nations
(hereinafter "UN" or "Organization"). The mandate of the Task Force also
includes a review in some procurement matters which have been closed, but
it is nevertheless determined that further investigative effort is warranted.

       The Task Force's investigations have also focused upon a myriad of
individuals and vendors doing business with the Organization. Some of
these matters are particularly complex and span significant periods of time.
Since its inception, more than 200 matters, involving numerous procurement
cases in various UN Missions and UN Headquarters have been referred to
the Task Force. The Task Force will report on matters individually. The
Task Force has given priority to the matters involving the eight staff
members placed on special leave with pay.

       The purpose of this report is to address the matters raised in the audit
findings of January 2006 concerning Walter Cabrera, a United Nations
procurement officer, and another matter brought to the attention of the Task

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OIOS PROCUREMENT TASK FORCE
REPORT ON WALTER CABRERA
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Force through a separate referral. First, Mr. Cabrera is alleged to have
improperly provided notification to a prospective vendor that approval had
been granted in favor of the vendor, Thunderbird LLC (Thunderbird) for a
contract to provide manpower support in UN Missions, prior to the official
award of the contract. Secondly, the audit report found that Cabrera
engaged in misconduct in connection with the procurement exercises in
substantial contracts ultimately awarded to the firm Telecommunications
Consultants of India (TCIL). The audit report found significant fraud
indicators in connection with the procurement exercises in these contracts, a
conclusion with which the Task Force agrees. (The Task Force will report
on these issues in much more detail in a subsequent report addressing related
matters). However, the focus of this report is upon the conduct of Mr.
Cabrera individually, and whether Mr. Cabrera acted improperly in his
participation in these matters.

        APPLICABLE RULES AND REGULATIONS

      This matter is examined within the confines of the applicable United
Nations regulations and rules, and in particular, the following:

Rule 1.2(b) which requires Staff Members to "uphold the highest standards
of efficiency, competence, and integrity." The regulations define the concept
of integrity to include, but not limited to, "probity, impartiality, fairness,
honesty and truthfulness in all matters affecting their work and status."

Rule 1.2(i) which requires that Staff members "shall exercise the utmost
discretion with regard to all matters of official business. They shall not
communicate to any Government, entity, person or any other source any
information known to them by reason of their official position that they
know or ought to have known has been made public, except as appropriate
in the normal course of their duties or by authorization of the Secretary-
General."

        METHODOLOGY

       The Task Force has examined the discussion and findings in the audit
report, and spoken with both the auditors responsible for the matter, and, on
several occasions, Mr. Cabrera. The Task Force has examined the file from

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the procurement department ("PD") in connection with the Thunderbird
matter, and the TCIL contracts. However, substantial portions of the files
concerning both of these cases were found to be missing. Nonetheless, the
Task Force has examined relevant email communication, electronically
stored records, and hard copy documents received through a variety of
sources. The Task Force has spoken with the officials in DPKO responsible
for requisition of the items underlying the contracts at issue, and other
United Nations procurement officers involved in these matters.

       With regard to the TCIL contracts, the investigation of Mr. Cabrera's
involvement in the laptop procurement, more fully discussed below, has
faced a number of significant challenges including the procurement
department's policy of short term retention of cancelled bids and the
turnover and movement of staff. Nevertheless, forensic data recovery has
been an important tool utilized to examine the circumstances and the
relevant communication on the issue. In connection with the Thunderbird
matter, significant portions of the Thunderbird file are also missing. In that
case as well, the Task Force has been able to use forensic resources to gather
significant relevant information and evidence.

        DISCUSSION

Notice of the Award to Thunderbird LLC

       The facts of this matter as they relate to Mr. Cabrera are not in
dispute. In May, 2002, Thunderbird LLC (Thunderbird), through Mr.
Nishan Kohli, its Managing Partner, had submitted an application in support
of registering with the Organization as a vendor authorizing it to submit
proposals on upcoming UN contracts. In July, 2002, after successfully being
registered by PD, Thunderbird, through Nishan Kohli, submitted a proposal
for the supply of engineering manpower to various UN Missions in response
to the RFP issued by the Procurement Department. Ultimately, Mr. Sanjaya
Bahel, Chief of Field Procurement, had made a presentation to the
Headquarters Committee on Contracts (HCC) in favor of the award to
Thunderbird. The matter had not been assigned to Mr. Cabrera until late
December, 2002, and he was involved in the case only peripherally until that
time.


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       However, after the presentation by Mr. Bahel to the HCC on 4
September 2002, the HCC granted expedited approval for an extension of
the existing contract being performed at the time by IECS-IRCON ("IECS"),
and a subsequent award to Thunderbird to replace IECS. The circumstances
surrounding the request for expedited approval and the basis for it are not
fully clear. There is no record of such a request, and there is no reference to
any such request in the minutes of the HCC. Mr. Cabrera has denied
making the request, and there is no information in the procurement
department's files on the issue or to suggest Mr. Cabrera made the request.
However, it is clear that the request is required to come from the
procurement department, either the officer making the presentation, or the
supervisor. The line officer who attended the HCC meeting with Mr. Bahel
has denied making the request at any time, and there is not evidence to
suggest that she did.

         However, the investigation has revealed Mr. Bahel's personal
involvement in ensuring that the vendor, Thunderbird, received advanced
notice of the likely award. Other than the HCC secretary, Mr. Bahel is also
the only individual associated with the request for expedited approval in a
position to seek it. The need for expedited approval for Thunderbird in the
first instance and the effort to notify Thunderbird quickly of a likely award is
questionable in light of the fact that in the same HCC meeting the current
vendor, IECS, was granted an extension to continue for an additional two
months, and that Thunderbird had failed to submit audited financial
statements and was given an additional four weeks to accomplish the task.
(However, Thunderbird took over eight weeks to file the forms). Thus, the
basis for the intensive effort by Mr. Bahel to notify Thunderbird is
problematic, especially in light of the fact that Thunderbird's application
was still not yet complete. Curiously, there is no request for advanced
notification to IECS of the expedited approval of their extension.

         While the minutes of the HCC meeting were pending and not yet
finalized, however, a one page form had been issued by the HCC granting
expedited approval for both the continuation of the current contractor, and
for the replacement, Thunderbird. The circumstances surrounding the
creation of this form and the request for expedited approval in the first
instance are troubling, and are a continued subject of the Task Force's
investigation. However, at present, there is no evidence in the possession of

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OIOS PROCUREMENT TASK FORCE
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the Task Force which demonstrates Mr. Cabrera participated in this aspect of
the matter.

        After the HCC presentation, Mr. Bahel, who was scheduled to leave
New York for annual leave, convened a meeting with Ms. Jane Redfern, a
UN procurement officer, and Mr. Walter Cabrera prior to his departure. In
this meeting, Mr. Bahel instructed them to notify Thunderbird of the
recommendation to award the contract to them. According to Mr. Cabrera,
he understood that he was not able to provide a Letter of Intent (LOI) to
Thunderbird, but was able to give verbal notification of the HCC's action
based upon the document issued by the HCC. Mr. Cabrera's understanding
that this action was permissible was based upon the fact that his supervisor,
Mr. Bahel, directed him to do it, as well as his independent understanding at
the time. At the direction of Mr. Bahel, Mr. Cabrera did in fact notify Mr.
Nishan Kohli that the HCC had recommended that the contract be awarded
to Thunderbird and that Thunderbird would likely receive the contract. Mr.
Cabrera asserts that he further notified Mr. Kohli that PD could not issue an
LOI prior to receiving the approved HCC minutes and formal award of the
contract. (Mr. Kohli's explanation of the events in his written submission to
the Organization through his attorney materially differs, however the Task
Force does not find Mr. Kohli's representations credible).

        Mr. Cabrera concedes that he provided notice to Nishan Kohli at the
express direction of Mr. Bahel after the HCC had issued a notice of
expedited approval. According to Mr. Cabrera, Mr. Bahel left instructions
to await a copy of the approval in his inbox in the procurement office.
Further, according to Mr. Cabrera, Mr. Bahel explained to Mr. Cabrera that
he would be out of the office and requested that Mr. Cabrera should retrieve
the document and notify the vendor of the likely award. Mr. Cabrera
acknowledges that he followed the direction, and in the course of contact
with Mr. Kohli, he provided the notification.

       While the salient facts as they relate to Mr. Cabrera set forth above are
not in dispute, the propriety of his actions has been questioned. The Task
Force has examined whether Mr. Cabrera's conduct ran afoul of any relevant
United Nations regulations or rules, particularly the prohibition against
improper communication of propriety information to those outside of the
Organization not authorized to receive it (Regulation 1.2(i)), the prohibitions

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against favoring particular vendors in bidding exercises, and the
procurement rules in general. Mr. Cabrera's contention in defense of his
actions is that in instances in which the HCC grants expedited approval, and
thereafter issues the approval form, notification to the vendor that an award
is likely does not contravene existing rules.

        The Task Force has not been able to identify any precise
procurement rule on this point in existence at this time and requests of
numerous departments in the Organization have failed to produce anything
relevant. Hence, there does not seem to be any clear directive either
permitting or prohibiting such action. Further, several witnesses within the
Organization with significant experience in procurement matters have
informed the Task Force that in circumstances in which expedited approval
is sought, it is not improper to provide such conditional notice to allow a
contractor to prepare to comply with its obligations under the contract and
allow them to adequately prepare themselves to perform in a timely fashion.
While it is certainly questionable whether in this instance notice of expedited
approval was truly exigent in light of the fact that the vendor was not going
to perform under the contract for two months and Thunderbird had yet to
submit audited financial statements, there is no evidence that suggests Mr.
Cabrera shared responsibility for the request in the first instance, or was
otherwise aware of the unexplained circumstances of the request for
expedited approval and the basis for it.

       Therefore, in light of the foregoing, and the absence of a clear
regulation to the contrary demonstrating that Mr. Cabrera should have
known his actions were improper, the notification Mr. Cabrera provided
cannot form the basis of an adverse finding against him.

The TCIL Contracts

       The contracts awarded to the firm Telecommunication Consultants of
India (TCIL) have been the subject of extensive examination by the Task
Force. Again, while these matters will be discussed in much more
exhaustive and comprehensive detail in a subsequent report, they are
addressed herein only as they relate to Mr. Cabrera.




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REPORT ON WALTER CABRERA
STRICTLY CONFIDENTIAL
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       The Task Force has examined the five contracts set forth in Table 11
of the audit report AP2005/600/20 of January 19, 2006, at paragraph 123.
While the Task Force acknowledges that the auditors quite correctly found
that strong indications of fraud existed in connection with these contracts, an
examination of Mr. Cabrera's role in these matters has not resulted in
evidence of improper conduct on his part. The investigation has found that
Mr. Cabrera was not involved in the bidding procedures in these matters,
with the exception of one contract. While an extensive discussion of all of
these cases is therefore unnecessary, an analysis of Case #5, PD/155/02, the
laptop computers, requires discussion as Mr. Cabrera was the case officer.

       In this matter, the audit report found at paragraph 125 that "[t]here
were indications that Walter Cabrera distorted communication to DPKO for
the purpose of canceling the initial bid where TCIL was not the lowest
bidder, and the Compaq brand of computers offered by TCIL was not going
to be selected as a standardized brand. TCIL won the replacement bid."

      In addressing this issue, some background is necessary. First, it
should be noted that the procurement file in this matter was found to be
incomplete, missing documents and relevant information. The Task Force
was able to identify more details as a result of forensic analysis of electronic
media. However, it cannot be said that the Task Force is comfortable that all
information involving this matter has been gathered. That said, the Task
Force was able to reconstruct the following facts concerning this matter from
various documents and searches of electronic media, and discussions with
relevant parties.

       In February, 2002, DPKO Communications and Technology Services
Division (CITS) sought to obtain a new systems contract for laptop
computers. Mr. Cabrera was the procurement officer in the procurement
department (PD) assigned to this matter. The Chief of CITS communicated
his request to PD, and on February 25, 2002 an expression of interest was
issued by PD. An invitation to bid followed on April 15, 2002 which was
transmitted to 36 vendors from nine countries.

        CITS advised PD that they desired only "IBM, Dell and Compaq"
based on ITSD standards for desktop computers. On the other hand, PD and
the Information Technology Services Division (ITSD), involved in the

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process by Mr. Bahel, recommended adding Toshiba, Sony, Fujitsu and
NEC to the list. In a subsequent exchange of emails between PD and the
requisitioner (CITS and ITSD), CITS continued to assert that they sought
only the three major brands of computers to avoid "inferior products,"
laptops from "questionable manufacturers," "clones" and "home built
computers." Ultimately, however, CITS agreed that they were amenable to
expanding the field to include other major brands of computer manufacturers
who were recognized industry leaders. As a result, on April 24, 2002, the
case officer, Mr. Cabrera, issued a bid amendment notification to the
vendors correcting the anticipated quantity of the computers sought, and
clarifying that that only "Compaq, Dell, IBM, Toshiba, Sony, Fujitsu and
NEC" brands would be considered for solicitation.

       On May 15, 2002 the bids were read publicly. La Cresta
Communications of California submitted the lowest priced bid based upon a
Pentium III Toshiba model. TCIL was the next lowest bidder offering a
Compaq model, followed by Dell, and then SSDI with an IBM, and finally
Manchester Technologies offering a Fujitsu model. On May 30, 2002, Mr.
Cabrera notified La Cresta that the company needed to resubmit the
specifications for the Toshiba model they were offering as the table of
compliance with the bid technical terms was absent and specification pages
from La Cresta's submission were contrary to the proper format.
Nevertheless, Mr. Cabrera allowed La Cresta to resubmit the pages.

       In its response, La Cresta informed PD that Toshiba was
discontinuing the Pentium III model offered in its original submission, but
that they would upgrade the model proposed to a Pentium IV at no extra cost
to the Organization. La Cresta informed PD that because Toshiba was
discontinuing the Pentium III model, they therefore could not provide the
anticipated quantity of Pentium III laptops called for in the RFP. However,
La Cresta informed PD of its ability to fill the order for the guaranteed
quantity with the currently proposed model and of its readiness to fill the
remainder with an upgraded model at no extra cost.

       The investigation has revealed that Mr. Cabrera forwarded to CITS,
by email, La Cresta's updated offer of an upgraded model. Email
communication reflects that Mr. Cabrera's dialogue with DPKO continued
with respect to La Cresta's offer. The Task Force has expended

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considerable effort to reconstruct the sequence of events that followed. A
three week lapse existed between the time of the finding that La Cresta was
determined to be compliant, and the initiation of the re-bidding exercise. In
the interim period, email correspondence confirms that DPKO found
LaCresta to be technically compliant even after the offer of an upgrade. Mr.
Cabrera was further in the midst of preparing the presentation to the HCC.


         Procurement Department officials concede that at this point there
was no further issue and there was no justification not to award the contract
to LaCresta. Indeed, no justification is provided to La Cresta, or found in
the file. It seems that La Cresta was not formally informed of the
cancellation. (Typically the case officer maintains the responsibility for
communicating the cancellation to the vendor.) In this case, there is no
correspondence in the case file from procurement to the vendor notifying
them of the cancellation. A DPKO official involved in the process has
informed the Task Force that in conversations with PD in this interim period,
it was represented to him that PD had expressed a view that there was an
"issue" with LaCresta's submission. According to the official, the
Procurement Department suggested a re-bid because of a "technicality."
While the official objected, he was told that because the matter is a
commercial one it is only within PD's prerogative to cancel the bid on the
basis of commercial non-compliance. This explanation is not persuasive as
there was no commercial or technical issue with LaCresta's bid. DPKO had
found La Cresta to be compliant and the firm was the lowest bidder. Mr.
Cabrera agrees that the reasoning proffered by PD to the DPKO official is
not sound, but takes issue with any claim participation by him in the
exchange or decision.

         Nonetheless, it is clear that a new invitation to bid (ITB) was
issued. The basis for this renewed ITB however is not clear, nor is the
identity of the individual(s) who sought it. The Task Force has not
identified any evidence to support a finding that Mr. Cabrera was involved
in the decision and the documents demonstrate that Mr. Cabrera continued to
maintain a dialogue with DPKO concerning its requests. Further, the Task
Force has not identified evidence which suggests Mr. Cabrera sought to
cancel the bid, and then seek a re-bidding exercise.


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        The investigation has revealed however that Mr. Cabrera's supervisor,
Sanjaya Bahel, was intimately involved in the matter, and interjected himself
in it, communicating with ITSD officials and DPKO officials. The DPKO
official referred to above stated that he had conversations with Mr. Bahel in
which Mr. Bahel confirmed that PD was of the view that there was a
technical issue with LaCresta's bid, and there should be a new bidding
exercise.

       The proposal was re-bid in early July. The supplemental ITB
ultimately limited the solicitation to the three brands requested by CITS.
The ITB was based upon the upgraded specifications, the Pentium IV model.
Ten companies responded, and two companies, TCIL and Danoffice, were
the most competitive both offering the same Compaq model. TCIL offered
the lowest price, followed by Danoffice. Of the initial bidders, TCIL was
the only company to offer a lower price for the computer model it offered.
All other vendors raised their prices from the initial bid. Although La Cresta
offered a Compaq brand, and the second lowest bid, the model it was
offering was inferior to the models offered by TCIL and Danoffice, and was
in fact determined by CITS to be non-compliant.

       On July 18, 2002, Sanjaya Bahel, the Officer in Charge of
Procurement at the time, recommended the award to TCIL for a systems
contract in the amount of US$5,340,000. In the presentation of the matter to
the HCC, officials questioned the basis for limiting the bidding exercise to
the three specified brands and intimated that the PD violated UN rules and
regulations by the use of brand names in its ITB. Email communication after
the event describes a circumstance in which DPKO officials are questioned
about the limitation of the re-solicitation to the three preferred brands. The
HCC stated that "were it not for the imminent loss of funds, the Committee
would have recommended that a re-bidding exercise be conducted inviting
all brands of laptops that met the UN's requirement." Nevertheless, the
proposed contract award to TCIL was ultimately approved, and signed.

          The cancellation of the first bid, and the invitation for vendors to
re-submit further bids in light of the cancellation, allowed the other vendors
a second opportunity to bid on the laptop contract. While it is unclear what
precipitated this action, the re-bidding exercise is questionable in light of the
fact that LaCresta was held to be technically compliant and offered the

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lowest bid. On that basis, it appears that they should have been awarded the
contract in the absence of objection by the requisitioner. Mr. Cabrera
concedes that this is the case. Nevertheless, there is a lack of evidence in
possession of the Task Force that Mr. Cabrera was a factor in causing the re-
bidding exercise. Indeed, he did not have the authority to do it, and past
practice suggests that such a decision could only come from a supervisor.
As such, the Task Force's investigation cannot conclude that Mr. Cabrera
engaged in this act to favor TCIL, notwithstanding the fact that cancellation
of the initial bid and the re-bidding exercise allowed TCIL, and the other
vendors, a second opportunity for the contract.

         CONCLUSION

       Based upon the foregoing, the Task Force's investigation has been
unable to identify a sufficient basis to support a finding that procurement
officer Walter Cabrera acted in violation UN rules and regulations of the
Organization in connection with 1) his involvement in the Thunderbird
matter in 2002, and 2) his participation in the TCIL contracts, and in
particular the laptop contract, which were the subject of the audit report.




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