Gandhi’s Options
After Chief Financial Officer Natwar M. Gandhi gave his speech to the Anacostia Coordinating Council, LL and Post reporter David Nakamura followed the man outside to an awaiting 15-passenger van, hoping to get a little more out of the now tight-lipped bean counter.
Not much luck. He declined to give any meaningful response when Nakamura asked him for a response to Congress's decision to nix his pay raise.
LL asked Gandhi if he had any regrets not taking the lucrative Amtrak job he'd been offered earlier in the year. His response: "That's all gone now."
But Gandhi implied during his speech that he'd had other job offers since the scandal broke, and LL asked if he would expand on that. "You know," he started, "That's part of being a financial officer..."
At that point, former Ward 8 Councilmember Sandra Allen appeared and gave Gandhi a convenient out. "Hi Sandy!" Gandhi said, walking away from the reporters.
9:49 pm
What the fuck is Sandy Allen doing. She should be home keeping an eye on her criminally bent family members.
11:18 pm
Despite reports that District of Columbia coffers are "flush" with revenue, the reality is that many public services are stretched and stressed for general operating expenses and hard cash. Beyond the headlines and behind the lines is the ugly truth of D.C.'s fiscal imbalances and stolen dollars.
Confidentially ask the teachers of our still faltering public schools, fire fighters still waiting for upgraded lifesaving equipment, police officers stretched to the brink with diminished street staff, and the everyday District citizen feeling that sense of dread over the weak socioeconomic safety net of our city-state. Stadiums, condos and construction cranes don't disguise the lies we see on the streets.
Almost one year into the mayoral takeover of our public schools, the actual evidence of measurable improvements is skimpy at best. Parents are still effectively kept out of the real information and decision loop, though it's done with smiles and distractions. Now, it comes to pass that the money needed for academic and structural improvements was "underestimated." Nevertheless, many six-figure salaries have been doled out for dubious duties and invisible results.
D.C. firefighters and EMS personnel answer daily emergencies risking their own lives with substandard safety equipment, and numerous fire hydrants with questionable states of operation. Lives and property are at stake through finger pointing and excuses from D.C.'s Water and Sewer Authority. Money for long overdue maintenance, repair and upgrades seem to drown in the continuing politricks of shell game financing, panic management, and so-called "emergency legislation."
All hands are on deck, but proportionately fewer hands are available to permanently drive down and destroy the District's crime spikes. These spikes aren't minor if you're the victim. Random acts of violence on D.C . streets and Metro facilities are still in vogue. MPD officers are still expected to take a bullet while being insulted with a pathetic paycheck, ever-demanding work schedules, plus an elusive respectable 20-year retirement package. Some may take former chief Charles Ramsey's recruitment offer as Philadelphia's new top cop.
But wait! There's more! While some so-called city leaders devise new phony fiscal schemes to find the money they said we had, dollars continue to fly out the doors of District agencies from corruption and the usual crackhead budgeting. The real questions about D.C.'s systemic corruption is what did or does District CFO Natwar Gandhi know, and when did he know it? Better still, why didn't he know it? Does the "No Snitching" policy apply in D.C. government too?
Hopefully, federal investigators and prosecutors have embedded themselves deep enough into the District's caldron of corruption to discover the high and low level perpetrators eligible for D.C.'s version of the "perp walk." No doubt, certain 'Who's Who' characters will try to make quiet deals behind news headlines. Fortunately, for investigators, there are many genuinely honest, competent, and overlooked District government employees. All they need is a truly safe sign that it's "all good" to tell the true tale of our city.
Make the true guardians of our public resources and reputation an offer they can't refuse. Provide full immunity, absolute personal and career safety, plus a reasonable small percentage of the public tax dollars saved or taken from the sticky hands of numerous corrupt D.C. bureaucrats. Altogether, this is a real savings of our hard-earned tax dollars and good longterm fiscal policy.
Dennis Moore, Chairperson,
District of Columbia Independents
for Citizen Control (DCICC)
http://www.DCIndependents.org
dennis@DCIndependents.org
5:10 pm
Nice, I think it could be interesting to add some more entries following this one, and probably it