Germany says Wolfowitz resignation "unavoidable" (Roundup)

May 18, 2007, 11:31 GMT

Berlin - The announcement that World Bank president Paul Wolfowitz will step down at the end of June was described by Germany's Development Minister Heidemarie Wieczorek-Zeul on Friday as 'unavoidable.'

The resignation paves the way for the bank to restore its credibility and capacity to act, said Wieczorek-Zeul, one of the governors of the bank.

The minister said the internal structures of the bank will have to be examined and the voting rights of the poorest African countries strengthened.

Wolfowitz said Thursday he would resign on June 30, ending weeks of bitter conflict at the aid lender over a pay raise he arranged for his girlfriend.

The US has the clear right to propose a new candidate for the post, a spokesman for the German government said in Berlin Friday.

Deputy government spokesman Thomas Steg said that the person proposed should be a 'convincing' one.

A spokesman for Wieczorek-Zeul said the selection process will have to be transparent and the candidate well qualified for the position.

Germany's representative on the bank's 24-member board, Eckhard Deutscher, said Thursday that Wolfowitz harmed the bank with a leadership style that destroyed his support.

'I regret that Paul Wolfowitz personally suffered damage, but I regret the damage he caused the bank much more,' he told reporters in Washington.