[CCWG-ACCT] Follow-up from the Word Internet Conference in China

[Nigel Roberts]

Paul

If Fadi worked for me, then his leaving date would just have been 
brought forward dramatically, and he would have, as we say in the UK, 
found a number of pressing reasons to spend more time with the family.

But the Board don't collectively have the cojones to do that.

That's not really a criticism of the institution or the current members 
of it, just a recognition of how much power that the Board of 
non-profits (don't) have over their General Manager (as I saw over 20 
years ago as a board member of the Radio Society of Great Britain, which 
despite being an office I could trace back in history to a certain Sr. 
Marconi, had exactly the same level of power(lessness) than the ICANN 
Board has, in some aspects).

Indeed, were I an ICANN Board member I might take that view -- in that 
the damage to the organisation from further inflaming the situation 
might be greater than just crossing my fingers and waiting for the 
problem to go away naturally in the Spring.

However, it's a great example of lack of accountability, wouldn't you agree?



On 25/12/15 15:33, Paul Rosenzweig wrote:
> We must live in a bit of a different world, I think. Where I come from, any
> public official (and let's not kid ourselves -- that is what Fadi is) who
> did what Fadi did would be subject to discipline if not removal.  While
> acting in a public role, the official has no private capacity -- none at
> all.  At least in the world I inhabit that prohibition is so stringent that
> it applies even to actions that would be (under any reasonable test) so
> clearly distinct that the likelihood of confusing the public role with the
> private role was virtually non-existent.
>
> For a particularly telling recent example of this, consider this story:
> https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/style/meet-the-author-of-the-revena
> nt--except-you-cant-because-of-his-federal-job/2015/12/22/32d632fe-a5c5-11e5
> -ad3f-991ce3374e23_story.html.  A minor Federal official wrote "The
> Revenant" before he joined the government.  Now, the book is a major movie
> just released today, starring Leonardo DiCaprio.  In the normal course of
> events, the writer of the book on which the film was based would be doing
> publicity for the film.  Here, the author cannot -- because he is a Deputy
> Trade Representative of the US.  Now, I don't know about you, but for me the
> likelihood that people will associate the movie publicity with the USTR
> office and draw an inference of official US government approval is
> vanishingly small -- so on the merits I would say that this is a place where
> the officials private life could diverge from his public responsibility.
> But as I said, here we are so cautious about even the appearance of
> impropriety that the author is not doing any public relations for his movie.
>
> As others have pointed out for Fadi the possibility of confusion is clearly
> much higher -- the press and the public will (and have) linked his new
> "personal capacity" job to his current status as CEO of ICANN -- which is of
> course exactly why he was hired and exactly what the Chinese wanted.
> Frankly, as Nigel said, I find his behavior troubling and remarkably tone
> deaf.
>
> I should add that the purpose of the restriction on trading on your public
> position works both ways.  We worry not only about the new "private"
> connection currying favor with public official, we also worry that the
> official may make decisions in his public capacity that are now to benefit
> his future private actions rather than the public interest.  It isn't the
> connection and the cooperation that is troubling (as Eric notes) -- it is
> the promise of future employment with unknown benefits that was made while
> the public official was still working for the public that raises the
> questions.
>
> Paul
>
> Paul Rosenzweig
> paul.rosenzweig at redbranchconsulting.com
> O: +1 (202) 547-0660
> M: +1 (202) 329-9650
> VOIP: +1 (202) 738-1739
> Skype: paul.rosenzweig1066
> Link to my PGP Key
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Nigel Roberts [mailto:nigel at channelisles.net]
> Sent: Friday, December 25, 2015 5:47 AM
> To: accountability-cross-community at icann.org
> Subject: Re: [CCWG-ACCT] Follow-up from the Word Internet Conference in
> China
>
>
>> Are we tending a bit much toward micromanagement of the CEO?  I have
>> never been one of his fans, but this seems a bit much to make an issue
> over.
>>
>> avri
>
> This is not just a matter of judgment, but a matter of cross-cultural
> judgment. The CEO gets paid to get this right. And I REALLY expected better
> from Mr Chehade' in that department
>
> Actually, I would not have expected this kind of behaviour from recent
> previous CEOs.  Certainly not from Paul.  In fact not even from Rod, who
>    despite his public persona and irritating Hollywood rockstar ways was, in
> many was, quite sensitive to non-US cultures!
>
> In China, relationships matter.
>
> Appearance matters. A lot.
>
> Both of those things can be as important, if not more important than the
> 'letter of the law' as to whose dime he was on when carrying on the
> discussion with the relevant actors inside China.
>
> The American way (and the British, to a lesser extent) is based on a
> cliteral interpretation of the rules (with a seasoning of 'wiggle-room'
> for peccadilloes).
>
> So while it's understandable to hear from some of you that you don't see the
> problem, some of us really, really see a big issue here.
>
> I'm not going to complain loudly about the ethics side, although I
> personally find it curious that Fadi was there on ICANN's dime, yet once
> again making announcements 'in his personal capacity'.  A CEO can never be
> in his personal capacity, in my view until he gets his cardboard box.
> (It was strange how the reporters describe him as ICANN's CEO, though.
> Oh yes, that's because he IS. Even yet.)
>
> The issue is that the head of ICANN, voluntarily handed in his resignation,
> choosing to leave early, before transition was complete, and in another
> revolving-door shocker joined an organisation with an apparently completely
> different world view, and chose Wuzhen to make supportive statements of them
> and their backers.
>
> Once again, 'it's not what they say, its what others hear'.
>
> UK public servants have a purdah period before moving to organisations that
> operate in the same sphere.  Why, in the name of accountabaility, does ICANN
> still not? (Have we forgotten and already discounted the terrible optics of
> Dengate-Thrushgate?). A mere xix months would not be onerous.
>
> Please don't dissect Fadi's actual words. They don't count.
>
> Hardly at all.
>
> It's the nature of 'who', 'where', and 'when' that counts much more than
> 'what', or even 'why'.
>
>
>> '
>> And with that, I shall stop and simply add -- Happy Holidays!
>>
>
>
> Likewise.
>
>
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