Details continue to come to light regarding the ongoing investigation over the abrupt recusal of Royal Institute of British Architects' (RIBA) President Alan Jones following allegations that a "serious incident" had taken place.
Jones announced that he would temporarily step down from his position in April following concerns that whatever it was that took place could potentially harm the financial standing or reputation of RIBA itself. In the weeks that have followed, news reports from the British press indicate that Jones was allegedly taking part in an extra marital affair and that he potentially used his position within the RIBA organization to aid the career of the person he was having an affair with.
The Times reports that Jones was partaking in an affair with a woman, Sanoara Begom, who worked as an architectural assistant and that Jones used his position to help her look for work.
Additionally, a RIBA source tell's the UK's Daily Mail "I understand the allegations involve the free flat [RIBA] provides for presidents in central London," adding, 'I'm told it's being claimed he used it inappropriately by entertaining Miss Begom there – it's not clear that's a reasonable use of the property under Charity Commission rules." Daily Mail reports that Jones informed RIBA of the situation when the possibility of blackmail over the affair became a likely after Begom threatened to go to the press regarding her relationship with Jones.
The matter is currently under investigation by several authorities, including the UK's Charity Commission, which oversees RIBA and other charitable groups.
Currently, RIBA honorary secretary Kerr Robertson is "overseeing presidential responsibilities" for the organization in place of Jones, who announced that his absence from presidential duties would last between four and six weeks.
RIBA announced recently that it was moving ahead with its selection process for the group's next president, who is slated to take office in September 2021. It is expected that Jones will serve out his full two year term, which is set to end in August 2021.
16 Comments
And the award for best 'intercourse' euphemism goes to...
"entertaining."
I was guessing you meant "overseeing presidential responsibilities"
It was either that, or "Entertaining Miss Begom" as best musical at RIBA's annual talent show.
I was thinking how posh it is for RIBA to provide an apartment for their chief and then I remembered that Robert Ivy was paid almost $696,000 in 2017 by AIA, so maybe an apartment isn't that big of a deal?
Source.
So this head of the AIA is a de facto lobbyist for the profession? Not sure if they're bang for the buck.
Ivy is the CEO of AIA. His job is to facilitate operations, help grow the organization, and bring more revenue in from many sources (not only members fees). They pay him to make money and get visibility. The 'lobbyist' for the profession is probably the president, which is separate elected position who represents the members.
given that he lives in Belfast, and they want him to work in London, it's reasonable to provide some accommodation. If like AIA the RIBA presidency is an annually elected position, he isn't going to quit his day job and move his family for this, so it's necessary if they want representation from beyond London to take the position. /// I tend to get a bit tweaked when architects complain about architects who actually are making a lot of money. Like we all complain how hard the work is and how underpaid everyone is, and then when someone isn't underpaid, shouldn't we admire that and try to learn something about how they find some way to bring value that merits better pay? In my experience, leading groups of people is much harder and sometimes less fun than just designing buildings. It's also extremely important.
[Intro]
Hey, it's a sellout!
Hey!
[Verse 1]
Let me welcome you, ladies and gentlemen
I would like to say hello
Are you ready for some entertainment? Are you ready for a show?
Gonna rock you, gonna roll you, get you dancing in the aisles
Jazz you, razzamatazz you with a little bit of style
[Chorus]
C'mon, let me entertain you
Let me entertain you
Let me entertain you
Let me entertain you
[Bridge]
I've come here to sell you my body
I can show you some good merchandise
I'll pull you and I'll pill you, I'll Cruella DeVille you
And to thrill you, I'll use any device
Ah, ha ha ha ha...
We'll give you crazy performance
We'll give you grounds for divorce
We'll give you piece de resistance
And a tour de force, of course!
[Verse 2]
We found the right location
Got a lot of pretty lights
The sound and amplification, listen, hey!
If you need a fix, if you want a high, Stickells'll see to that
With Elektra and EMI, we'll show you where it's at
[Chorus]
So c'mon, let me entertain you
Let me entertain you
Let me entertain you
Let me entertain you
[Guitar Solo]
[Bridge]
Just take a look at the menu
We give you rock a la carte
We'll breakfast at Tiffany's
We'll sing to you in Japanese
We're only here to entertain you
[Verse 3]
If you wanna see some action, you get nothing but the best
The S and M attraction, we've got the pleasure chest
Chicago down to New Orleans, we get you on the line
If you dig the New York scene
We'll have a son-of-a-bitch-of-a-time
[Outro]
Come on, let me entertain
Let me entertain
Let me entertain you
Through the night
[Skit]
[Freddie] Hey, where's my backstage pass?
[Roger] That was a bit of a riot, yeah?
[Brian] Good - great one, outrageous costume!
[Freddie] Hey, that Brian May, he's outta sight, man!
[Roger] Not many, not many... no, it's true!
[Brian] Woah, what is up with that? Funny...
[Woman] I always wanted to be a groupie!
[Roger] Oh man, I could give less of a shit if you wanted... C'mon!
[Woman] Oh, oh!
the article notes that in his position he offered to "help with her CV and introduce contacts at firms." This seems like a totally appropriate thing for a RIBA president - or any experienced professional - to do, so long as there was no implication they had to hire her. the history implies he did this before they developed any relationship. In which case it's kind of a normal part of a political job like this.
so is the problem that he had sex with his girlfriend in the official residence? that she isn't his wife? it's salacious and fun to make fun of, but it doesn't seem reasonable or desirable to police these kind of things. you give people a house, they should be allowed to live normal lives in it.
nothing described in the article sounds like more than complicated personal life spilling out into view. it's a shame for both of them to be humiliated in a situation where there seems to be no abuse of power. it's just a matter of humiliating people for common misjudgments.
Tea time is fun.
Also this:
https://youtu.be/E8NuagM0TUQThanks for the clarifications on the different roles, midlander, I was being lazy. And I don't disagree with you about the potential that this is a tempest in a teapot.
I just like to remind my fellow AIA members whenever possible that almost $700K is a shit-ton of money for someone to earn, especially for leading an organization whose members are frequently complaining - legitimately - that the organization doesn't seem to be in tune with contemporary culture and practice. Hire someone 20 years younger and for half as much, is my opinion.
Donna, I'll do you one better; hire someone 20 years younger, pay them the same amount, and GTFO of the way. That's how the AIA could re-tool. Not by hiring a tool, that thinks in 2018 "social media" is the hip, new catch-phrase.
$700,000 annually is too much for one person to make I don’t care what their job is.
This was my blog about AIA strategic plan that got buried for some reason. These organizations are really not doing very well other than protecting the good ol' boy empires even with female executives honed in corporate structures..
These behaviors in architecture is pretty ingrained. We need brand new power structures and different connective tissues.
Good times for these organizations to declare manifestos for the public good and leave the privileged territories.
Agree with midlander. Very strange that it has become such a public issue. Two things to look into: (1) Isn’t it convenient that this undermined the president just as the RIBA rolled out a wacky reorganization putting a lawyer in charge of the trustees? And (2) the photo indicates design rot in the library. Who designed those hideous bookshelves with rounded end units and then did a layout that conpromises ordinary movement let alone emergency egress? This library should be a place to treasure for both its collection and its design.
Misdirection & distraction. It's a convenient smoke screen for hijacking the RIBA and taking ownership away from its members.
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