India

Overview:

India is the world's largest democracy and, according to UN estimates, its population (1.33 billion in 2020) is expected to overtake China's in 2028 to become the world's most populous nation.  As a rising economic powerhouse and nuclear-armed state, India has emerged as an important regional power.  But it is also tackling huge, social, economic and environmental problems. Home to some of the world's most ancient surviving civilizations, the Indian subcontinent - from the mountainous Afghan frontier to the jungles of Burma and the coral reefs of the Indian Ocean - is both vast and varied in terms of people, language and cultural traditions.  Hindu nationalist Narendra Modi stormed to power on a surge of popular expectation and anger at corruption and weak growth.   Despite Mr Modi's polarising image, his Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) scored an unprecedented landslide victory in the May 2014 parliamentary elections.  It was the first time in 30 years that a single party had won a clear parliamentary majority.  Mr Modi fought on his record as chief minister of the economically successful state of Gujarat, promising to revitalize India's flagging economy.  But his time in Gujarat was overshadowed by accusations that he did too little to stop the religious riots in 2001, which saw more than 1,000 people - mainly Muslims - killed.  

Source:  BBC Country Profile

American Embassy New Delhi:

A large OIG team was required to conduct the inspection of such a large mission.  Ambassador Richard E. Hecklinger was our team leader.  He served as Ambassador to Thailand 1999-2001 and also in high level positions with Bureau of Economic and Business Affairs and the Organization of Economic and Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).   Dick was easy going and not too demanding.  I ended up on his team on the Russia inspection a couple of years later.  Paul Reid, POL cone officer was DCM in Slovenia and had a tour in Paris with the OECD and coincidentally was a PCV in Zaire.  We had three management inspectors including my boss Ralph Kwong and colleague Perry Adair again.  I believe this was my first inspection with Tom Furey (CONS), Richard Behrend (POL) and Roger Cohen (IT) with whom I ended up working with on several other inspections.   Tom became affectionately known as the Co-CLO because he took the lead in arranging all the tours and accommodations for the team travelling on weekends.  Other inspectors included Sylvia Bazala (CONS), Craig S. Cheney (IT), Robert Eckert, Joseph M. Gardella, Mark Jacobs (PD), Mary O'Keefe (PD), James Pritchett, George L. Rivers, Iris Rosenfeld (Mgmt), and Lavon Sajona (Security).  I worked with Lavon on the South Sudan and Sudan inspection and Mark on the Islamabad inspection. After the initial inspection of the embassy in New Delhi we split up into smaller teams and proceeded to the Consulates.  I ended up going to Mumbai (the former Bombay) Chennai (formerly Madras) and Kolkata (the former Calcutta).      

I knew a few of the staff in New Delhi including the FMO, Ralph Hamilton who I didn’t work with but attended conferences together.  I remember the time in Vienna at the Albertina Museum when Ralph, Tom Quinzio and I visited the Leonardo da Vinci exhibition. Michael Bretz was the IMO at the embassy in Bangkok when I was at the CGFS financial service center. Mike married a Thai woman, Chovit, who ended up working in the International Cooperative Administrative Support Services (ICASS) service center in Washington.  He tragically passed away recently.    Gerry O’Brien was the Management Counselor who asked a lot of questions about working with the OIG after she retired, but never followed through.   I had known the Consul General in Mumbai, Paul Folmsbee, a management cone officer who was in Tanzania during the 1998 embassy bombings and became the Executive Director of the Africa bureau.  He was in Mumbai during the 2008 terrorist attack at the Taj Hotel where we stayed.  He became the Ambassador to Mali in 2014.

The inspection took place in New Delhi, India, between February 3 and March 23, 2011; in Mumbai, India, between February 15 and 24, 2011; in Chennai, India, between February 18 and March 4, 2011; in Hyderabad, India, between 2 March 7 and 11, 2011; and in Kolkata, India, between March 7 and 11, 2011.  Our original flight schedule was changed at the last minute due to the stormy weather in Chicago.  Instead of flying American through Chicago we were routed out of Dulles to Frankfurt and then on to New Delhi.  I remember sitting next to Lavon on the flight to Frankfurt and telling her I can't sleep on planes. . It was the only inspection where I actually overslept after the first day of arrival and missed our in-brief with the Ambassador.  We also had a scare with a threatened US Government shutdown midway through the inspection.  We flew on the local Jet Airways from New Delhi to Mumbai and Chennai and Spice Jet from Chennai to Kolkata and return to Delhi.      

Findings:

Housing issues were the mission’s greatest management challenge. Finding affordable, quality housing was difficult, especially in New Delhi, Mumbai, and Hyderabad. We recommended that the Bureau of Overseas Buildings Operations plan to build apartment units on U.S. Government-owned land or plan to long-term lease housing. 

Opening a new Consulate in Hyderabad required many management challenges including normalizing administrative support for other agency personnel under ICASS.  Working with the local government to identify a site for the new consulate compound.  Setting up a training schedule for local staff.   Also, a formal American employees association needed to be established that could offer recreational and social activities.

A major financial issue concerned the payment of official residence staff salaries at the Consulates.  During my work at CGFS/Charleston, with the passing of the Government Performance and Results (GFPRA), one of our primary goals was to cut down on making payments by check and cash especially for Locally Employed (LE) Staff salaries and instead pay by Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT) to bank accounts for both employees and vendors.  However,, the Official Residence Expense (ORE) staff are considered personal servants of the Ambassador, DCM and Principal Officer and therefore should be paid directly and not by the embassy or Consulate.  Over the years we have tried to get senior Department management to change the regulations to allow ORE staff to become regular employees but the Office of the Legal Advisor and Under Secretary for Management could never come to an agreement.  To this day it’s still an issue and some posts continue to pay ORE staff both in cash and others by EFT.   CGFS has made great strides in making EFT payments.

Another issue that affected the embassy and consulates was completing past due post differential surveys for all posts in the mission to justify maintaining the same level.  Likewise, to submit hotel and restaurant surveys to establish per diem rates.

The Consulate in Kolkata had issues with GSO procurement not complying with acquisition regulations for proper competition, bid evaluation, and contract administration.

In addition to inspecting management sections in the embassy we were tasked with covering, what we called “Quality of Life” issues.  That area encompassed the Community Liaison Office (CLO), American Embassy Employee Associations (AEEA), Medical Unit and American Schools.    I inspected the Employee Associations in New Delhi, Kolkata and Chennai.  The operation in New Delhi was massive with a very large commissary, restaurant and community center with annual income of over $4 million.  There were issues with monitoring the monthly liquor and tobacco quotas at the embassy commissary.  The Chennai employee association needed to install a point-of-sale inventory and accounting system in the commissary and the Mumbai was behind in submission a balance sheet and income statement.  

An interesting activity when the team returned home was with the A/OIG, Harry Geisel, to hold what was called a "hot wash" to review the final "field" draft of the inspection report.  Our boss, the Assistant IG for Inspections, Bob Peterson and each of the functional coordinators would meet with all the inspection team members to review the most significant findings in the report. Also, to highlight issues of interest to the Department, recommendations that would most likely produce opposition and savings or funds put to better use among others.  This was a preliminary review to highlight significant findings.  Of course, I had to stick around and respond to any financial management issues and then make sure all my worksheets with supporting documentation (evidence) were completed before I could go back home to Charleston.    

Bob Peterson had been with the OIG since 1987 when he moved over from USIS.  He became the AIG for Inspections in 2003.  He was a great guy admired by everyone.  Bob retired from the OIG in the spring of 2015.  Sandy Lewis took over as AIG in July 2015.          

Highlights:

• We did a lot a lot of sightseeing in Mumbai: Prince of Wales Museum located in a heritage building, Mumbai City Museum and National gallery of Modern Art

• Took a road trip to Pondicherry, White Town the residential quarters of the French, for the weekend.

• Stopped briefly in Mamallapuram to see the rock carvings. 

• Doris joined me towards the end of the inspection and were able to visit Agra, Rajasthan and Neemrana. See our travel blogs:  Jaipur - India 2011 | Doris and Bill (dorisandbilltraveladventures.blogspot.com) and Neemrana Fort Palace - India 2011 | Doris and Bill (dorisandbilltraveladventures.blogspot.com) and Agra - India 2011 | Doris and Bill (dorisandbilltraveladventures.blogspot.com)

The construction of this marble masterpiece is credited to the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan who erected this mausoleum in the memory of his beloved wife, Arjumand Bano Begum, popularly known as Mumtaz Mahal, who died in AH 1040 (AD 1630). Her last wish to her husband was "to build a tomb in her memory such as the world had never seen before". Thus emperor Shah Jahan set about building this fairytale like marvel.  The construction of Taj Mahal was started in AD 1631 and completed at the end of 1648 AD. For seventeen years, twenty thousand workmen are said to be employed on it daily, for their accommodation a small town, named after the deceased empress-'Mumtazabad, now known as Taj Ganj, was built adjacent to it. Amanat Khan Shirazi was the calligrapher of Taj Mahal, his name occurs at the end of an inscription on one of the gates of the Taj. Poet Ghyasuddin had designed the verses on the tombstone, while Ismail Khan Afridi of Turkey was the dome maker. Muhammad Hanif was the superintendent of Masons. The designer of Taj Mahal was Ustad.

Mahatma Gandhi  Statue

Gandhi's residence

Traffic in Mumbia

Taj Mahal Hotel where we stayed in Mumbai and the sight of the November 2008 terrorist attack when an Islamist terrorist organization from Pakistan carried out 12 coordinated shootings lasting four days.    

Queen Victoria Station in Mumbai 

Prince of Wales Museum in Mumbai

Among the Hindu monuments at Mamallapuram 

Rock carvings at Shore Temple Mamallapuran

Holy Name Cathedral in Mumbai

 Jain Temple dedicated to Goddess Padmavati 

Leopold Cafe in Mumbai where we had a few meals made famous
 in the book "Shantaram" written by Gregory David Roberts

Immaculate Conception Cathedral in Pondicherry

Santhome Cathedral in Chennai

Parthasarathyswamy Temple in Chennai

Street scene in Pondicherry

Ubiquitous Cows which are revered as sacred in Hinduism 

Street vendor in Kolkata 

Year in Review 2010

Highlights

OIG Inspections of Embassy Sanaa, Consulate Dubai and Embassy Abu Dhabi in February/March.

In Sanaa, we stayed at the embassy hotel (The Sheraton) and were pretty much confined to our rooms in off hours, but did get to watch the Super Bowl and attend a Marine happy hour at the embassy.  We did manage to visit the market in Sanaa one afternoon with tight security.

Arriving in Dubai we stayed over the weekend in the super plush Emerald Palace hotel before leaving for Abu Dhabi. The Burg Khalifa in Dubai had just opened but we couldn't take the elevator because of electrical problems.  We stayed at the Hyatt Regency in Dubai and I did play tennis with an Iranian a couple of times at the hotel tennis courts.

Most of the team stayed an extra week in Dubai while I continued on to Abu Dhabi where there was more work for me being the embassy.  We stayed at the Holiday Inn in Abu Dhabi. There was no much to do in Abu Dhabi I did find a Starbucks at the Shangri-La Souq, a modern housing complex with shops and restaurants and visited the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque.  Additional photos and narrative can be viewed at:        
boothwjtravels.blogspot.com/2011/02

http://boothwjtravels.blogspot.com/2010/02/sanaa-yemen.html
 





 

• In April/May we visited our friends Steven and Fran Carignan in Vienna, Austria and travelled with them by train overnight to Venice, Italy and to Budapest, Hungary by boat.   Doris and I travelled by train from Vienna to Salzburg, Austria; and other trips to Bratislava, Slovak Republic; and Prague, Czech Republic .

  

   

  


  

 

For more photos and narrative see: Doris and Bill Travel Adventures Blog Spring 2010 Timeslide 

• In June we visited Morris Island and Fort Wagner with the Low Country Explorers.  Morris Island was heavily fortified to defend Charleston Harbor, with the fortifications centered on Fort Wagner. On January 9, 1861, the first shots of the American Civil War were fired from cannons by cadets of The Citadel at the Star of the West as the ship tried to resupply Fort Sumter.  It was the scene of heavy fighting during the Union Army's campaign to capture Charleston, and is perhaps best known today as the scene of the ill-fated assault by the 54th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry, an African-American regiment. The regiment and this assault, where it suffered over 50% casualties, was immortalized in the film "Glory".

 



• In August I received an email from Bob Nicolai, Administrator at the GFS/Charleston office asking if I would be interested in a WAE assignment to fill in as the Budget Officer until a new person was hired.  OIG/ISP was amenable to my taking the assignment and my only plan for the fall was for a cruise in October.  So, I jumped at the assignment and covered the position for almost three months and trained the new Budget Officer.

• In October we took a Mediterranean Cruise from Istanbul to Monte Carlo with stops in Kusadasi (Ephesus), Mykonos and  Santorini in Greece; Messina, Sorrento and Capri, Amalfi, Rome, Florence, Cinque Terre, Italy; Sanary sur Mer and Castellet and Monte Carlo in France with three additional days on the Cote d'Azur (French Rivera) visiting Nice, Cannes, Antibes, St. Paul-de-Vence; Villefranche sur Mer and Villa Ephrussi de Rothchild.    

 

   

   

 

 

For more photos and descriptions see our blog:  dorisandbilltraveladventures.blogspot.com/2010/10/

• In November we visited Mepkin Abbey for the 8th Annual Creche Festival featuring the Jean and Alexander Heard Creche Collection.

                                            

 

News of the Nation

Arizona Immigration Law Pushes the Limit • Health Care Reform • Landmark Financial Regulation Bill • Midterm Elections • A New Era for U.S., Russia, and Nuclear Arms • The Official End to the War in Iraq • Passing the Buck on "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" • Same-Sex Marriage Ban Temporarily Overturned in California • The Supreme Court: Personnel Changes & Major Decisions • Tea Party Victories

News of the World

Few Signs of Progress Lead to Protracted U.S. Involvement in Afghanistan • Greece and Ireland Battered by Financial Crisis • The Ground Shakes in Haiti • Undaunted by Sanctions, Iran Continues to Pursue Nuclear Program • Iraq Struggles to Form a Government After Elections • Peace Remains Elusive for Israelis and Palestinians • North Korea provokes South with brinkmanship • Anti-Government Protests Continue and Turn Deadly in Thailand • WikiLeaks Release of Secret Military, Government, and Diplomatic Documents Sparks Outrage and Controversy

Read more: Year in Review, 2010 — Infoplease.com http://www.infoplease.com/news/year-in-review/2010/#ixzz1o8z8sXIr

Movies

"The Hurt Locker" won the Oscar for best picture at the 82nd Academy Awards.
Jeff Bridges won the lead actor award for "Crazy Heart," and the lead actress Oscar went to Sandra Bullock "The Blind Side."  Monique, "Precious" and Christopher Waltz, "Inglourious Bastards" won for supporting actress and supporting actor.  


Super Bowl

In Super Bowl 44 the New Orleans Saints defeated the Indianapolis Colts 31-17.  The game was played on February 7, 2010 while I was in Sanaa, Yemen staying and confined at the Sheraton hotel.  The Saints, who lost their final three regular-season games, are the first team to take a three-game losing streak into the playoffs and win the Super Bowl.  With the loss by the Colts and Manning, the last five regular-season MVPs to reach the Super Bowl have lost the game.




World Series

The Giants made franchise history Monday night with a 3-1 triumph in Game 5 of the World Series over the Texas Rangers, ignoring their underdog status to capture the 106th Fall Classic, four games to one.  Edgar Renteria, who is contemplating retirement after enduring a season in which he played a career-low 72 games, belted a seventh-inning home run off Texas ace Cliff Lee to account for the Giants' scoring. Renteria was selected Most Valuable Player for the Series after hitting .412 (7-for-17) with two home runs, six RBIs and six runs scored. It was a fitting career bookend for Renteria, whose Game 7 single won the 1997 Series for the Florida Marlins.  Tim Lincecum, the reigning two-time National League Cy Young Award winner, struck out 10 in eight mostly spotless innings. He surrendered three hits, including Nelson Cruz's seventh-inning home run. Lincecum improved to 4-1 in the postseason, including 2-0 in the Series.
Not only did the Giants win their first Series since relocating from New York to San Francisco in 1958, but they also earned baseball's biggest prize for the first time since 1954 -- ending the Majors' third-longest dry spell. The Cubs (102 years) and Indians (62 years) are left to look upon the Giants enviously.

Recap of 2010 Grand Slam Tennis Tournament Winners

·         Australian Open Men's Singles. Winner – Roger Federer defeated Andy Murray

     Ladies Singles. Winner – Serena Williams defeated Vera Zvonareva

·         French Open Men's Singles. Winner– Rafael Nadal defeated Robin Soderling 
           Ladies Singles. Winner– Francesca Schiavone defeated Samantha Stosur

·         Wimbledon Men's Singles. Winner – Rafael Nadal defeated Tomas Berdych

          Ladies Singles. Winner – Serena Williams defeated Vera Zvonareva

·        
     US Open Men's Singles. Winner –  Rafael Nadal defeated Novak Djokovic
         Ladies Singles. Winner – Kim Clijsters defeated Vera Zvonareva
  

Dubai and Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates

Overview:

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) is a federation of seven states that has grown from a quiet backwater to one of the Middle East's most important economic centers.   Although traditionally conservative and authoritarian in government, the UAE is one of the most liberal countries in the Gulf, with other cultures and beliefs generally tolerated.  In 2020 it became the first Gulf state to establish diplomatic relations with Israel.  Relations with neighboring Iran have been tense because of an ongoing territorial dispute over Gulf islands. The UAE was one of only three countries to recognize Taliban rule in Afghanistan.  Before oil was discovered in the 1950s the UAE's economy was dependent on fishing and a declining pearl industry. But since oil exports began in 1962, the country's society and economy have been transformed.   The UAE has diversified and has become a regional trading and tourism hub. UAE firms have invested heavily abroad. Abu Dhabi President Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed, who has a reputation as a pro-Western modernizer, was named as president by the UAE Federal Council in November 2004, shortly after the death of his father, Sheikh Zayed Bin-Sultan Al Nahyan.

Source:  BBC Country Profile

American Embassy Abu Dhabi:

We were happy to leave Sanaa where security was so tight and we were basically confined to the Sheraton hotel.  I remember submitting the requests for Danger Pay for each team member to Sandy Lewis, Assistant Inspector General for Inspections.   This was during a blockbuster storm February 5-6, 2010 that dumped 17.8" of snow in D.C. and 32" at Dulles that was referred to as 'Snowmageddon'.  Sandy was not still back to work yet.  As an aside, we used to enjoy reading the "News from Home" emails from the Deputy Inspector General for Inspections, Charlie Silver.  Charlie had a great sense of humor and not only shared news from the Department and D.C. but also happenings from the other teams (sometimes four or five) travelling overseas.  Charlie would give nicknames to teams and share  photos and news about their travels.  He also would remind us of changes to policies, for budget reasons, like not authorizing business class on return flights or encouraging inspectors to take a rest stop in route to posts.       

We were scheduled to inspect embassy Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates and the Consulate in Dubai between February 11 and March 11, 2010.  Embassy Abu Dhabi moved into a spacious new facility in 2004. However, the Consulate General in Dubai was working in cramped quarters in a 1979 office building, awaiting the completion of a new consulate general complex in 2011 with space in the new building already oversubscribed.

After spending a few days in Abu Dhabi at the Emirates Palace and completing the introductions to the embassy we relocated to Dubai to start the inspection there and stay at the Grand Hyatt.  I only had to stay a week in Dubai and then returned to Abi Dhabi to start inspecting FMO and HRO at the embassy.  I was able to venture out and visit the Sheikh Zayed mosque and the suburbs.  The staff at the Holiday Inn couldn't do enough to welcome us and provide good service.   

The FMO, Robert Hommowun, was fairly experienced and had some oversight issues as noted below.  Our management inspector lead, David Newell, was not impressed with the Management Officer (MO) Kristi Hogan-Lahmar, who seemed to resent him and didn't appreciate his advice and recommendations. Robert went on become a Management Officer in EUR.  Kristi is now a management Inspector with OIG/ISP.  Again, small world.         

Findings:

I interviewed the DCM, Douglas Greene and the MO about management controls and there were may issues with respect to coordination between the embassy and consulate in Dubai.  There was no memorandum of agreement between the embassy and Consulate outlining responsibilities for all management functions.  There were no scheduled meetings between the embassy's management staff and Consulate General Dubai's management staff.  There were no ICASS standards establish for service providers. The DCM was aware of problems in Dubai with delays in receiving Consular fees, too many cash disbursements, unauthorized commitments and no separation duties between property inventory and receiving.   He was also very concerned because the FSO GSO was curtailing.  Dubai was the first experience I had with a Consulate and I learned a lot especially in coordination with our Consular inspector and Consular fee collections.    

The HRO was Carolyn Richardson who became a PMO in EUR.  There were Human Resource issues in terms of concern about grading positions.  There was no bilateral work agreement with the Government of the United Arab Emirates. The results of the latest salary and benefit survey to ascertain the appropriate level of any justifiable increases for locally employed staff had not been reviewed.  Performance evaluations for locally employed staff of the embassy were not completed in a timely manner. There was no mission-wide post orientation program for all newly hired locally employed staff. The Consulate General Dubai needed to document a request for a new human resources assistant.

In terms of General Services the embassy needed to establish blanket purchase agreements and implement bulk funding and use of the purchase card.  The travel management center in Dubai was operating without a contract since 2005 so the Consulate needed to submit request to ratify the unauthorized commitment to the Office of the Procurement Executive.  The OIG questioned the Dubai lease document for compliance with the Bureau of Overseas Buildings Operations and the Office of the Legal Adviser guidelines.  There were issues with the Motor Pool operations in terms of tracking the amount of fuel used against the kilometers driven and completing the Daily Vehicle Use Record, including completing the entry for odometer readings, to enable the embassy to monitor whether official gas cards are being used correctly.

As for financial management the FMO needed to implement procedures to review prior-year accounts and de-obligate funds when obligations are no longer valid.  There was a need to begin the process of documenting collection notices and referring outstanding debts from the embassy and Consulate General Dubai to Global Financial Services in Charleston for collection action.  They needed to establish a principal class B cashier position at the Consulate in Dubai to handle Consular Fee collections.   The Consulate also needed to clear all outstanding interim advances that are more than thirty days old.

Highlights:

I did happen to meet my former boss from FSC/Paris Rob McAnneny in Abu Dhabi.  He was retired and on an assignment from NEA/EX to review GSO operations at a number of embassies.  It was great to see him and we did manage to get together for lunch.  I heard recently the Rob has the beginning stages of dementia. 

• The Burg Khalifa was just completed while we were there but the elevator was not operational due to electrical problems.  We did visit the Dubai Mall, the world's largest.      

• Staying at Emirates Palace Hotel in Abu Dhabi, then the Holiday Inn and the Hyatt Regency in Dubai.   

• Relaxing and reading on the weekend at Starbucks at the Shangri-La Souq in Abu Dhabi

• Visiting the Grand Mosque in Abu Dhabi

• Playing tennis with an Iranian I met in Dubai at the Hyatt Regency hotel.

• Viewing the old dhow boats used by pearl merchants along the downtown and shopping with        Bill Wanlund in the market Abu Dhabi. 

Burg Khalifa

Dubai Skyline

Emirates Palace

 

                                                          

                

Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque Abu Dhabi 

   

Traditional Dhow

                                                                        Shangri la souk in Abu Dhabi