Dr. Homoud resigns from IIMSAM in Protest of Prisoner becoming Goodwill Ambassador

Dr. Nasser Homoud, the Goodwill Ambassador and Director of Middle East office for the Intergovernmental Institution for the use of Micro-algae Spirulina against Malnutrition (IIMSAM) has handed in his resignation in protest of the appointment of Mr. Khalid Shaheen, who he has termed as “a prisoner, offender, absconder as well as the betrayer of the legal sanctity of the Jordanian state system”. After putting forward his resignation, Dr. Homoud said that he did this “in defense of the principles of my professional ethics and moral conduct which I have been upholding with unquestionable sincerity and integrity for a long time now”. He also expressed “I have never compromised with my zeal to serve the course of the human betterment with utmost faith in the noble values, righteous principles and, above all in my inner conscience”.

In his resignation letter to Ambassador Maradona, the SG of IIMSAM Dr. Homoud has contended that the appointment of Mr. Khalid Shaheen as the Goodwill Ambassador of IIMSAM has left him in an unavoidable dilemma when he has to choose between serving the distinguished ideals of an institution or resigning in all his capacity to cultivate and nurture the conscientious path of carrying out his duties and responsibilities without any guilt or burden of wrongdoing. He also states that “elevating a man, who has no faith in the judicial ethos of the state of Jordan which I have always adored as my caring motherland, to a mature and accountable post of Goodwill Ambassador of IIMSAM has certainly compromised and put a question mark on all the painstaking and assiduous services rendered by its officials as well as the support it has, throughout, been receiving from different quarters of Jordan, Arab region and the whole world”. He went on to say “I have no qualms in determining that I must discontinue my tenure as a Goodwill Ambassador of IIMSAM and from every other post I hold under its aegis with immediate effect so that my unflinching beliefs in higher codes of professional and personal morality and my love for my motherland is not shattered”.


As Mr. Khalid Shaheen is a convicted person and absconding prisoner of Jordan and his appointment goes in direct contravention of settled principles of moral ethics and values, Dr. Homoud said “I believe this is an issue relating more to an institution than to a particular person, and a condemnable political conspiracy hatched by notorious people and staged by incompetent authorities to elbow out the settled principles of transparency and is against the fundamental tenets of United Nations Convention against Corruption which mandates that corruption can be prosecuted after the fact, but first and foremost, it requires prevention”. He pointed out “it is widespread that IIMSAM is facilitating Khalid to move from one place to other by misusing diplomatic passport which IIMSAM has provided him, making IIMSAM supporting Khalid for his wrongful gains and I cannot afford such wrongdoing and hence, I feel that I should quit now”. He further pointed out that amid such unwarranted developments the very future of IIMSAM seems to be on peril as it has started degrading its principles and conceding with its honesty and integrity.

In a media briefing he said “I submit my resignation from all posts of IIMSAM forthwith on Khaled Shahen case. The appointed Goodwill Ambassador of IIMSAM Khaled Shahen was convicted by the State Security Court (SSC), Jordan in July 2010 along with three other defendants in the Jordan Petroleum Refinery Co. (JPRC) expansion project corruption case to three years in prison for bribery”. It further states “Khaled is a proclaimed absconder from Jordan who was behind jail for his role in high voltage bribery and corruption case and escaped from Jordan on pretext of medical treatment and refused to come back to Jordan”. Dr. Homoud made it clear that he don’t deem it fit, amid prevailing turn of events, to continue with IIMSAM since the organization has miserably failed to determine the established procedures and guidelines of the United Nations against the corruption and corrupt practices.

Dr. Homoud added further “I joined IIMSAM in 2008 as first Goodwill Ambassador from entire Arab region to work for the malnourished children. I worked very hard during my tenure to fulfill the mandates of the organization and with all thanks to stakeholders who supported us in this crusade we took IIMSAM to a high level of recognition in entire Middle East region”. He also explained the works which ME Office of IIMSAM undertook under his leadership for welfare of people who are hunger ridden and malnourished.