KVIA is the only media outlet that is properly investigating the various financial scandals resulting from Calderon’s recent audit of the gas cards and P-cards issued to our City leaders.
Yesterday, political blogger Rich Wright asked, “Where is the rest of the media?“
MAYOR TERMINATES WORK LUNCH POLICY
Erik Elken has distinguished himself as the most determined watchdog reporter in local television, uncovering various abuses and presenting the key facts and figures to the viewing public.
His report Thursday focused on the $98,158 worth of questionable P-card purchases by Rosa Maria Monsivais, the Secretary of Tommy Gonzalez, over a period of 16 months.
This included $17,424 for work lunches for City officials.
Yesterday Elken revealed that the Mayor ordered an end to City-paid work lunches.
This is a concrete example of how watchdog reporting can directly influence not only public perception, but also government policy, sometimes in less than 24 hours!
REP. HERNANDEZ’S CHECK TO THE CITY DID NOT BOUNCE
Elsewhere in the news, Elken confirmed that the check for $6,700 Rep. “Gassandra” Hernandez wrote to the City for her “excessive” purchase of 1,944 gallons of gasoline in 2022 was cashed.
You will recall that Hernandez initially responded to the audit by accusing her colleagues of attacking minorities and alleging that Chief Internal Auditor Calderon and others engaged in professional misconduct. Similarly, former Rep. Claudia “Filler’up” Rodriguez accused her former colleagues of sexism.
Neither of the women has apologized, but Hernandez admitted her guilt by repaying the $6,700 she believed she owed to the City.
Very soon, Chief Internal Auditor Calderon will release his audit of 2023 gas card usage by the Mayor and City Council.
Will Hernandez be writing another check?
EPPD HAS NOT YET REFERRED THE CASE TO THE DISTRICT ATTORNEY
Meanwhile, our Police Department, which is supposed “to protect and serve” the people, has yet to refer the results of Calderon’s audit to the Office of the District Attorney for review and possible prosecution.
District Attorney Bill Hicks told Jennifer Cuevas of KFOX14 yesterday: “Until we actually get a case here in our office where I can read the evidence, I can see the witness statements and I can actually look at the entirety of the case, until we have that will I ever be in a position to say one way or another what our opinion is on the gas cards or anything else going on city hall.”
Hicks went on: “Once we have a case then I call tell you okay we’ve reviewed it, it’s gone to the grand jury and the grand jury has declined to proceed with it, or we’ve accepted prosecution or we’ve declined prosecution there’s all different avenues that we could take a case but until it ends up in my office we don’t have an avenue to go forward.”
Why is our Police Department refusing to act?
Something is not right.