WFP ‘digital nomad’ chief of staff should clatter out with McCain

 ROME – WFP chief of staff Meghan ‘chopper pilot’ Latcovich is expected to depart the hunger-fighting programme imminently following the resignation of WFP Executive director Cindy McCain though staffers joke that the former Navy pilot won’t have high re-location costs as she reputedly has been working remotely from her kitchen in Washington DC for the past year.

 Last August it seemed to observers that Ms Latcovich effectively was in charge of  WFP as she rather than McCain signed a memo on  urgent “corporate efficiency measures” amid speculation that the Trump administration might ask Ms McCain, a Biden appointee, to stand down.

 Ms Latcovich, a de facto bodyguard of Ms McCain, said in the memo that “in line with our ongoing efficiency efforts, projected donor forecasting, and the recent US 90-days pause in foreign assistance, we are implementing immediate corporate measures to safeguard our ability to assist the most vulnerable people. While in 2024 we made progress towards a leaner, field-focused organization, including reducing our overhead budget by 15 percent, we will need to stay the course and continue our efforts. These new measures represent necessary adjustments to help us navigate the current pause and contribution outlook effectively.”

 Ms McCain is a maverick Republican credited by some observers with enabling the election of President Biden by campaigning for him in the key swing state of Arizona where her late husband, reviled by Trump, was governor. At the time of the memo she was recovering from a hip replacement  operation and in October she suffered a stroke. At age 71 she is beyond the mandatory UN retirement age of 65 though a number of senior executives receive exemptions. 

.She had the reputation of rarely venturing out from her office and arranged for Ms Latcovich, to stay at her swanky apartment in Rome when she was in the Eternal City as a de facto bodyguard, WFP sources say.

 Ms Latcovich and director of communications Michele Quintaglie by last month axed as many as half of the UN agency’s employees and consultants in the Communications division, using budget cuts as a pretext to replace older. loyal employees with their friends and free up funds for new director level croneyist hires, WFP sources say.

 Ms Quintaglie fired or forced into retirement half her division “creating an atmosphere of fear while she is protected by Meghan who continues to work from her kitchen in Washington,” one well-placed source said.

 The bloodletting in the division has led to at least 25 people losing their livelihood including those who have had their posts abolished, consultants whose positions have not been extended and people pushed into separation, the sources added.

 Budget cuts due to the United States, the UK and other donors slashing funds provide a rationale for the job losses but then Ms Quintaglie is hiring a new P5 position to the media team while the official WFP retention policy is not respected, the sources added.

 Two new D1 positions on sky high salaries and benefit packages have been created. The Two new D1s under the chopper pilot include former Brussels liaison office director Frederick Lee Holsson  as director of diplomatic affairs while there is also the director of the sexual harassment

 “They are using WFP as if it was their own private business with no respect for anyone,” one employee whose contract has been axed told the Insider.

 “There is a clear conflict of interest and abuse of authority by the best friend of the Executive Director who decides the fate of staff,” the former staffer added, speaking on condition they not be named.

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