ISTANBUL (CIHAN) - New Secretary General of the Organization of Islamic Conferences (OIC), Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu said on Wednesday that Saudi Arabia`s financial aid to the OIC is absolute and he believed that Saudi support for a Bangladeshi candidate for the office of Secretary General would not create a problem.
Ihsanoglu who yesterday was elected Secretary General of the OIC at the 31st Foreign Ministers meeting of the OIC answered reporters` questions.
Responding to a question that Saudi Arabia supported the Bangladesh candidate at the OIC election and will this situation create a problem when decisions are made at the organization Ihsanoglu said, "I do not think so. Saudi Arabia has an important place in the organization and its financial aid to the OIC is absolute."
Noting that the OIC election was democratic and independent, Ihsanoglu said that, "If only one candidate ran, it would not be an election. The decision was made democratically. The decision of some countries to support another candidates is very normal."
Ihsanoglu added that he has been at the mission of OIC Research Centre for Islamic History, Art, and Culture (IRCICA) for 24 years and he has never had a problem with financial aid from Saudi Arabia.
Ihsanoglu won 32 votes in the first round while Malaysian candidate Hashimi Acem and Bangladeshi candidate Selahaddin Çudri received just 12 votes each. It was the first time in the history of the OIC, which was founded in 1969, that the general Secretary was elected through voting. Previously, the 57 member nations generally focus on a single candidate.