Appoint a forensic accounting expert to fill one of the Miami commission seats

Al’s Loupe

By Alvaro F. Fernandez
alfernandez@the-beach.net

Last week I wrote about Tomas Regalado, Miami’s recently elected mayor. In that column I mentioned my disappointment with an electoral process which considers a less than 20 percent turnout of potential voters in the city a success. I demonstrated disgust with Mayor Regalado’s reference to not fearing the mention of Cuba and Venezuela issues on the dais — at the expense of a looming bankruptcy for the city, violence on the rise, and the area’s largest (and only public) hospital also in the red, to name just a few of so many other problems facing the state’s signature municipality.

A week has now gone by and it seems things may have gotten worse for Mayor Regalado. With a commission made up of five members, on Monday one commissioner (Angel Gonzalez) gave up his seat, which kept him out of jail for garnering a well-paid job for his daughter from a city contractor. It turns out that in a period of more than two years the daughter never, ever worked, but still managed to get paid. A second commissioner (Michelle Spence-Jones) was removed by Florida Governor Charlie Crist. She was charged with the theft of public money and defended herself by referring to the action as a “public lynching.” Yes, Ms. Spence-Jones happens to be black. But while making this incendiary remark, she left out the part about important testimony against her coming from African-American members of the community.

In the meantime, the city’s chief of police was forced out of his job — by the new mayor.

So Regalado’s team is now composed of a brand new commissioner, who was chosen in a runoff election on Tuesday. There’s also a second member, also new, who was sworn in last Friday, which left Mayor Regalado with only one experienced commissioner to face the hard times ahead. And two holes to fill. They can be appointed, or a special election can be called.

In newspaper photos and on TV, Regalado appeared worried. I don’t blame him. We should all be worried because Miami is in a mess. And it’s worse than the usual — which in this city, it’s normally not that good to begin with…

A silver lining — or not

After last week’s column, in the comments section under my article, I was lambasted by one of my readers who said I was very critical without offering solutions to the problem. Believe me, whether with me or against me, I listen to my readers when they have something constructive to offer. And I felt this reader had a good point which drove me to thinking.

The more I thought about the Miami situation, an idea began to formulate in my mind. And considering that Regalado and Governor Crist have the power to replace the two troubled commissioners, a plan germinated. One that would put into action (at least in Miami) the governor’s plan to investigate statewide criminal activity committed by public officials.

What I propose would not be that difficult. Regalado and Crist can start by looking for a Certified Public Accountant who lives in the City of Miami who is ready to serve his or her city. There must be hundreds of them. In the downtown area alone, there are buildings full of them. That number will immediately be reduced because he or she must be an expert at forensic accounting. In other words, this person would look at Miami’s books and derive evidence of all economic transactions and be able to defend it in court if necessary. He or she would then report what is really happening with the city’s finances.

That person, who should not have political ambitions, can be appointed to one of the open commission seats. He or she would agree not to run for office when the term expires. And he or she would be appointed with one major goal in mind, to put together a first-rate team of experts to look at the city’s finances — past, present, and looking forward.

I ran my idea, which excited me to no end, through a friend — a City of Miami insider. He said nothing for a few seconds, which seemed like an hour. Then he slowly responded with a shy laugh; you know the kind, the laughter one often hears when someone is afraid of something. He said: “Are you crazy!”

“Why?” I asked. “I happen to think it’s a good idea…” Sure, “it’s a good idea,” he said. “In your world, maybe…” he mumbled.

We talked and he explained what, deep inside me, I knew. He said that this person named to such a powerful position, owing nothing to anybody, would be a threat to every living politician in Miami. Not to mention hundreds, and maybe thousands of City of Miami employees. In other words, the fear is that skeletons would walk out of closets — not even fall out. Things in the city, he insisted, would actually become worse.

The dreamer in me told him that maybe in this manner “we could get to the bottom of things.” He then said something that shocked me. “That person would not last,” he said, “They would disappear him…”

Corruption, in other words, is ingrained. It’s part of the system. You don’t want to get too far into it. And when a politician, like Crist, for example, with his idea of empanelling a statewide grand jury to root out corruption, mentions a crime fighting idea, it’s usually words in order to win elections. Following through may get him in trouble, I’ve been warned — even if he is clean…