While browsing the local blogosphere this past week, our curiosity was piqued by postings in The Crespo Gram Report and Take Back Miami regarding the status of the Miami-Dade Ethics Commission, specifically questioning why its executive director, Robert Meyers, was still at the helm. Meyers resigned as executive director in February after he was "accused of engaging in a questionable 'personal relationship' with an aide."
As is typical with all things Miami-Dade, ethical indiscretions are not a bar to being the head of the ethics commission, and to continue "earning" your $230,000 a year taxpayer supported salary.
The story of Robert Meyers, well documented by CBS 4, started when "an anonymous complaint about Meyers was sent to Mayor Carlos Alvarez accusing Meyers of engaging in a 'personal relationship' with an assistant" who was Meyer's subordinate. "The complaint included hand-written notes from Meyers to the assistant discussing lunch plans."
Rather than investigating Mr. Meyer's actions, Ethics Commission advocate "Michael Murawski [$146,671 a year salary], who is also called a prosecutor, focused on who obtained the lunch notes, apparently from the office of Meyers’ assistant. In a memo to most of the staff, Murawski wrote that he was going to conduct 'an investigation' to 'determine the person(s) responsible for rummaging through a co-worker’s office.'"
The investigation, referred to as an "inquisition" by one Commission staffer was encapsulated by another staffer who commented "'They are focusing on all the employees instead of all these notes between the director' and his assistant."
This is the behavior of the Miami-Dade Ethics Commission that is supposed to enforce and maintain the public trust by keeping an eye on the politicians of Miami-Dade County. No wonder that MDT, Jackson, WASDA, Housing, and so many other agencies are running amok when the public watchdog is asleep.
What's worse of all is that Mr. Meyer's actions are only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the behavior of Commission members, all calling into question what ethical and moral authority does this Commission have when it has been unethical itself?
In its nearly thirteen years of existence, when is the last time the Ethics Commission actually made a difference?
It is time to put the "Ethics Commission" and its $2 million budget to rest and transfer its jurisdiction and mission over to the Office of Inspector General.
