Dr. Taleb Rifai during his decade of service succeeded in raising the bars of excellence within the UNWTO and within the UN system. When Rifai started, tourism was not a big agenda item for the United Nations. The UN climate was very different when Rifai handed over the reigns to Pololikashvili. We all can agree on one point, the enormous role the world’s largest economy – tourism – plays on the global stage.

Despite a low budget, Rifai worked to make a substantial difference in diversifying tourism in supporting initiatives like the Peace Through Tourism, Child Protection program, and the Silk Road project, just to name some.

However, all of these projects were canceled, dismantled, or destroyed by Pololikashvili. They were gone with the active broom Pololikashvili is cleaning house with, yet it leaves a trail of destruction in its wake.

During ITB Berlin in March 2018, Alla Perssolva was getting ready to deliver her report on the renowned UNWTO Silk Road program, which she has been working on for 28 years. Without Ms. Perssolva, Silk Road Tourism would not have earned the well-known brand name status it enjoys today. Alla Peressolova was very much looking forward to leading both events at ITB to conclude her UNWTO term and was then hit by a surprise when her name was not on the Berlin travel list. When trying to discuss this with UNWTO Secretary-General Zurab Pololikashvili, he was not available to talk to her. Again, no discussion, no response.

November 29, 2017, was all about honoring Carlos Vogeler, executive director of the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) during the final session of the UNWTO Conference on Jobs and Inclusive Growth in Montego Bay Jamaica. Vogeler was honored by the Jamaica Minister Bartlett for 9 years of hard work for UNWTO.

Mr. Vogeler has been devoted to his position at UNWTO. Most tourism leaders considered him the second man in UNWTO. Travel and tourism was a 24/7 job for Carlos, and it showed with his results. At the Sustainable Tourism Conference in Jamaica, he again gave his very best, and was leading the UNWTO delegation with Taleb Rifai. It was his last assignment.  Mr. Vogeler was unable to discuss his desire to stay on at UNWTO, or his unexpected sudden departure, which came as a surprise, even though his official period of services had ended.  No response or giving in from Zurab.

These are big name players.  There are many, many other staff members without known, public names who have been ousted, threatened, in addition to other key figures in UNWTO, who are gone from the platform. Whoosh goes the Pololikashvili broom.

On another note, transparent media relations is non-existent, and the transparency with which Dr. Rifai extended to the media is gone.

Of course, Pololikashvili is asked a lot of questions he doesn’t want to answer from inquiring media outlets.  Now its time for the Executive Council to ask the very same questions.

This publication as an example has not been receiving responses from the UNWTO media department, “out of policy”.At the recent WTTC Summit eTN Publisher, Steinmetz was not allowed to ask a single question at a press conference  Pololikashvili attended. According to a well-placed source, Pololikashvili instructed WTTC not to allow eTN to take the microphone during an open media conference.  eTN finds that to be cowardly, and entirely inappropriate for a United Nations agency.

All of this seems to be justified by an audit our newly-elected Secretary General ordered/purchased.  He commissioned KPMG to conduct an audit, which delivered the manufactured reasoning for a clean sweep of the entire UNWTO organization.

It’s time for the Executive Council to be more than a rubber-stamp committee. After all, the Executive Council represents the countries of the world seeking income through the largest industry in the world: travel and tourism.

Perhaps its time to find out what it would take for a vote of “no confidence.” This has never happened before in the history of UNWTO, but never before was the global tourism industry in such peril, with the reigns of the world’s largest single industry in the hands of a despot Secretary General who has zero regard for the rich legacy he inherited from the esteemed, cherished leadership of Dr. Taleb Rifai.

This morning in Spain, the Executive Committee of UNWTO will convene for the first time since the new Secretary General Zurab Pololikashvili took charge of the specialized UN agency,  based in Madrid, Spain.

The Executive Council’s task is to take all necessary measures, in consultation with ‎the Secretary-General, for the implementation of its own decisions and ‎recommendations of the Assembly and report thereon to the Assembly.‎ The Council meets at least twice a year.‎  Let’s hope they use the time wisely at the meeting today.