FAO supremo rallies for Marxist candidate

ROME – FAO Director General José Graziano da Silva and his wife took time off the other day to join a rally in support of PT Brazilian candidate Fernando Haddad outside the Brazilian Embassy in Piazza Navona, the Libero Quotidiano newspaper reported Saturday.

 Mrs Graziano joined a group of militants holding a banner in the square and the couple posed for photographers. Diplomatic observers were surprised that a UN agency head should take part in a partisan political demonstration in a host country.

 Against this background it comes as no surprise that Senor Graziano has acknowledged that the FAO faces a ‘cash crisis’ and that the agency is unable to borrow money to pay its bills. Brazil’s current government has not paid its dues to the FAO while the UK, Germany and the United States also still have to make their payments.

 jp