Triple Crisis blogger Martin Khor published the following opinion article in The Star on the IMF’s search for a new managing director and why the way its chief is selected and its policies have to be changed.
Changes needed at IMF
Last week’s arrest of Dominique Strauss-Kahn on charges of sexual assault was followed by his resignation as managing director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
This quickly sparked a race for his successor in the most important position in finance among international organisations.
European leaders were quick off the mark, arguing that the post should again be taken by a European, as according to the old but discredited tradition.
It has been increasingly recognised that the convention that the IMF chief must be a European while the World Bank president should be an American can no longer be justified.
The two leaders should be selected from persons from any country according to merit, and not on the basis of their being European or American, which is a colonial or neo-colonial principle.