Corruption | The Buffalo Chronicle

Public procurement ‘S-words’ and cronyism

June 22, 2015

By Rich Purtell Standardization. Single Sourcing. Sole Sourcing. Strategic Sourcing. These have all become common techniques used in the purchase of government goods and services. “Procurement” is the term used to mean the professional buying profession. Without proper accountability in

Does a caged bird sing?

May 28, 2015

Western New York’s political world has been inalterably rocked today with the issuance of search warrants at the homes of the renowned political operative G. Steven Pigeon, and two others: former Deputy Mayor Steve Casey and Chris Grant, Congressman Chris Collins’ Chief

Standardization: a flawed strategy to save costs on government construction?

April 14, 2015

By Rich Purtell Webster defines standardize: “to change (things) so that they are similar and consistent and agree with rules about what is proper and acceptable.” The process can certainly be used to help reduce costs for construction projects. Whereas

Consolidation of government procurement worsens corruption in government

April 7, 2015

By Rich Purtell A plan called FSSI (Federal Strategic Sourcing Initiative) is akin to “legalized cronyism”. HR 1441 is a bill now under consideration that is in need of a CBA (cost benefit analysis); write your congressman about that. At least

Combating corruption in government construction requires a new approach

March 24, 2015

By Rich Purtell At a young age we are all educated about the USA gold standards of “innocent until proven guilty” and double-jeopardy. These are fit and proper standards for criminal convictions, and even with these beliefs, we still wrongfully

Stunning incompetence at Housing Authority has residents concerned

March 22, 2015

The Buffalo Municipal Housing Authority’s stunning level of incompetence was on display at the agency’s March Board meeting last Thursday, and it is having horrible impacts on the 31 public housing complexes that the agency manages. The mismanagement is so dire

Public corruption is much more than bribery

March 19, 2015

By Rich Purtell The landmark US Supreme Court case Citizens United v. FEC, decided in 2010, protected free speech but unfortunately as a consequence the ruling essentially established that political corruption and bribery are synonyms. For hundreds of years prior