More No Show Misspending Detailed
Pete Gorman, IAFF Trustee candidate, has another installment out this week with information about a second person at the IAFF getting a regular check under dubious circumstances.
This one is apparently for $24K annually and has been going on for many years.
Sixteen years in fact, the same number of years that Ouellette has been a trustee.
The lucky receiver is also on an IAFF pension, according to Gorman.
Gorman asks Ouellette to explain the $24K arrangement along with the previously detailed $36K payout which went to a friend of Harold Schaitberger, IAFF General President.
So far, Ouellette has been missing in action.
It’s hard to conceive of circumstances where an experienced incumbent trustee would fail to answer such charges.
If Gorman’s information is factually correct, Ouellette should say so and explain the circumstances.
If not, he should also set the record straight.
The fact that he does neither is quite concerning.
The silence suggests a certain arrogance or that he cannot be bothered to explain his performance or actions, something any legitimate candidate would be happy to do.
There is always the possibility that he has been told to say nothing perhaps to contain a delicate and sensitive situation.
A Schaitberger trademark has been to ignore critics even when it makes sense to be forthright.
In fact, Schaitberger has controlled the IAFF for so long that the current trustee race must be both jarring and foreign territory.
Gorman has a sterling reputation for honesty and it’s now common knowledge that Schaitberger fired him for trying to stop unethical behavior.
Is Ouellette silent because Schaitberger needs his help?
Given what everyone now knows coupled with Ouellette’s silence on the issues, support for him can only be construed as support for Schaitberger.
If Ouelette is helping to hide Schaitberger’s unethical and unlawful conduct, even through his silence, his possible exposure to sanctions is the least he should suffer.
Gorman closes his letter with a promise to next discuss how the IAFF extorted money from MDA, demanding an amount far in excess of what they need or use.
That should be interesting.