Statement at the Opening of the Sixty Fifth Ordinary Session of the OAU Council of Ministers
During his statement to the OAU Council of Ministers Dr. Salim pays tribute to Boutrous Boutrous Ghali, the outgoing United Nations Secretary General, and welcomed Kofi Anan, the new Secretary General of the United Nations.
On Mr. Boutrous Ghali:
"Indeed we in Africa, take particular pride in the principled and exemplary manner in which Dr. Boutrous Boutrous-Ghali discharged his functions at the helm of the United Nations, during a particularly challenging and difficult period in the history of that Organization. He did so with a high sense of responsibility, professionalism and commitment, as well as with impeccable integrity and independence."
On Mr. Kofi Annan:
"This is also an opportunity for me to reiterate my sincere congratulations to our eminent brother, Kofi Annan, over his election as Secretary General of the United Nations. His election was, indeed, a recognition of his competence and commitment to the ideals of the United Nations. It was also a tribute to his country, Ghana, which distinguished itself in the struggle for the dignity and freedom of our peoples and Continent and which made an invaluable contribution to the promotion of Pan-Africansim, African unity and solidarity."
