From Voice of OC:
The string of revelations at Anaheim City Hall of potential conflicts of interest among high-level city officials and employees has one good-government expert recommending that the city create an ethics commission.
Tracy Westen, CEO of the Los Angeles-based Center for Governmental Studies, said the revelations show a clear pattern of inattention toward possible conflicts of interest. He points to the absence of important safeguards against the threat of city insiders using their authority for personal gain.
Which is the reason, he said, an independent watchdog is important.
“It’s inevitably always a conflict to have city employees do it, because they have to potentially blow the whistle on their bosses,” Westen said. “There has to be some independent review so reporters don’t have to spend the rest of their lives figuring it out.”
1952 Congressional map courtesy Orange County Archives
Speak Your Mind