Election

All drafts leading to the Convention provided for the appointment of the Secretary-General and any Deputy Secretaries-General by the Administrative Council upon nomination by the Chairman (History, Vol. I, pp. 56, 58; Vol. II, pp. 56, 77, 101, 108, 118, 477, 545, 752, 954, 1014). There was some opposition against the Chairman's power to nominate candidates, based on the concern that this power would affect the Secretary-General's independence or unduly restrict the Administrative Council's freedom of action (at pp. 127, 130/1, 248, 252, 317, 481, 484/5, 561, 720). There was also some debate on whether the Chairman should be required to nominate several candidates (at pp. 318, 485, 561, 656, 719–721). A discussion on the period of service led to the insertion of a maximum period of six years with the possibility of re-election (at pp. 318, 561, 722, 726, 967, 968/9, 975, 1027). Suggestions to state the candidates' required qualifications and grounds for a possible dismissal are not reflected in the Convention (at pp. 318, 483/4, 561, 969). The idea to involve governments in the nominating process led to the clause on prior consultation of the members of the Administrative Council (at pp. 719–721, 935). Transition arrangements dealing with the problem that the first Secretary-General would only be elected by the representatives of few States were relegated to the Report of the Executive Directors on the Convention (at pp. 969, 1024–1027, 1075).