Republican Mayoral
Candidate Calls on Mayor Gilmore to Take Responsibility for His
Administration
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8/4/2007 -
Citing his opponent’s willingness to take credit for everything good, Hamilton
Republican Mayoral Candidate John Bencivengo called on his opponent, Mayor Glen
Gilmore, to take responsibility for what Hamilton’s auditor called “a very
serious situation.”
Responding to the media reports that the Hamilton
auditor refused to sign off on the township’s financial report and issued the
first adverse opinion of his career, Bencivengo expressed concern for the
leadership ability of his opposition. “President Harry Truman said it best,
‘The buck stops here!’ and Glen Gilmore should step up, take responsibility,
investigate the actions of his entire Administration and discipline all of those
responsible, not just the scapegoats,” said Bencivengo.
“The only
response from the Mayor is to once again shift the blame to a lower level
employee rather than take it himself,” Bencivengo stated. “This Administration
continues to flounder in addressing significant flaws with the bidding process
that allowed almost 90 contracts to be improperly entered into and now we have
found out that Mayor Gilmore allowed his Administration to botch up yet another
contract that will leave the taxpayers stuck paying the bill through higher
sewer taxes,” he continued. “Such an attempt to shift the blame is all the more
questionable when there is documentation that the Mayor and his business
administrator knew of this latest contract problem months ago when they spoke to
bond counsel regarding the use of a bond ordinance designed to cover their
tracks. Fortunately, the DCA rejected such an attempt to play even more games
with Hamilton’s finances,” added Bencivengo.
“Perhaps it is ironic
that the millions wasted were on a mismanaged sewer waste line,” Bencivengo
commented. “Perhaps the Mayor should fix the Administration’s contracting
pipeline first that is wasting millions in Hamilton’s tax dollars. The solution
is quite simple; follow the law,” he continued. “Between these improper
contracts and the many illegal stop signs that the Mayor has placed throughout
Hamilton, it raises the question of how many more corners have the Mayor and his
Administration cut in the interests of political expediency and to the detriment
of Hamilton’s residents.”
Bencivengo noted that Mayor Gilmore is not
bashful about showing up for every photo-op in Hamilton. “Just look at the
taxpayer-funded calendar for Hamilton residents; it looks like Mayor Gilmore’s
photo album,” he said. “But when his Administration makes yet another huge
mistake, he shifts the blame to one of his subordinates. Mayor Gilmore is to
Hamilton as Ken Lay was to ENRON. He is either grossly negligent with the
taxpayers trust or completely incompetent and asleep at the wheel and he owes an
explanation to the taxpayers/shareholders of Hamilton,” Bencivengo concluded.
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