Abuja — African Union (AU) criticised the condemnation of United Nations Secretary General Mr. Kofi Annan over his son's alleged role in the oil-for-food scandal in Iraq.

The AU made the condemnation from its headquarters in Addis Ababa Ethiopia at the opening of a two-day extraordinary session of the African Union Executive Council declared open by Nigeria's Foreign Affairs Minister Ambassador Oluyemi Adeniji.

Ina statement made available in Abuja yesterday AU affirmed its unflinching support for Annan's great commitment to the UN.

In a declaration, the AU pointed out Annan's determination to "reposition the UN in a globalized world in which multilateralism should be predicated on shared responsibility and joint management of global affairs."

There have been calls from different quarters for world's number one civil servant to resign from his post at the UN after his son Kojo was accused of receiving oil-for-food payments from Iraq,.