By Juan Montoya
The ad by the DefeatZayasCortezPowers PAC in Wednesday's Brownsville Herald outlining Brownsville Independent School District trustee Ruben Cortez's relation with vendors doing business with the district is apparently the tip of the iceberg.
Not long ago we reported that ERO, and engineering and architect company from McAllen that did work for the district, had hosted a fundraiser there for Cortez. Now we understand that Dr. Jose wife Kathlyn Jimenez are hosting yet another fundraiser for Cortez and his business partner and fellow trustee Rick Zayas at the Rancho Viejo Resort this coming week.
A local blogger has mistakenly posted that trustee Enrique Escobedo voted to hire Ms. Jimenez to replace Art Rendon at Special Needs as a special favor to Dr. Jimenez. However, if Jimenez is having a fundraiser to support Cortez - Escobedo's opponent - that theory is obviously incorrect.
Jimenez, the former Chief executive Officer at the Doctor's Hospital, left that firm after auditors discovered that more than $1 million in the firm's assets were unaccounted for.
What's interesting here are the political relationships at play.
In the case of ERO, one of the principals in the company is none other than Manuel Hinojosa, the brother of former Cameron County Judge Gilbert Hinojosa. Hinojosa was defeated by current judge Carlos Cascos.
Cascos is currently seeking reelection and has John Wood, a county commissioner, as his opponent.
If you recall, Cortez came out and publicly endorsed Wood over Cascos for the November election. No one is particularly surprised that Cortez would seek the financial support of an architectural firm. He has a long record of hounding vendors who do business with the district.
In fact, among one of the projects listed in Hinojosa's resume is the design of a high school in the Brownsville school district.
Former Cascos administration public relations staffer Melissa Zamora, now a City of Brownsville commissioner, has lined up on Wood's side against her former employer.
It would not surprise us if she and architect David Mendez, (of Gomez-Mendez Architects), another vendor that does business with the district, were some of the prominent guests at the Jimenez fundraiser.
Zamora has also come out publicly in support of Wood over Cascos. She was on the Cascos administration but left after she ended up on the losing end of an internal power struggle.
In the PAC's ad, a copy of an email sent by CAS Companies officer Aaron Garcia openly seeks donations and political contributions on behalf of Cortez, an apparent violation of the Texas Election Code. We understand that currently, its president and other officers with CAS might be asked to sit in deposition with lawyers for Accion America and its director Carlos Quintanilla who were sued by Rick Zayas and Cortez for defamation.
Among the charges made by Cortez and Zayas against Quintanilla was that he had charged them with corruption and with granting "sweetheart" contracts to their friends.
And we hear that PAC members are investigating what they call a "junket" that Zayas, BISD insurance consultant Gary Looney and local insurance mogul Johnny Cavazos took to Costa Rica. They claim that if true, it would show a clear conflict of interest by Zayas since Looney was at the heart of the HealthSmart fiasco and the company Cavazos represented was awarded the insurance contract over HealthSmart.
In response to a comment on this post, we went back to our source who asserted that Cavazos had paid for the trip.
"We hope to show that both Zayas and Cortez have strayed past the borderline with this kind of behavior," said a PAC member. "It makes you wonder how they can say that "it's all about the children," and that "it all starts withe education when they flaunt their relationships with people who do business with the district and depend on their votes to get the contracts."
Saturday, October 16, 2010
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rita
12 comments:
Going on a trip together doesn't mean anything but who paid for the trip might. Mr. Looney who is not named Jason and Mr. Cavasos have done business together for many years and are friends.
Carey Malek was on that trip, as well. Also, check and see who the players were when BISD had The Travelers Insurance Group as their Group Health insurance carrier back in the late 90’s. The plot thickens! "It’s About the Children" my ass...it's about Ben Franklin!
Maclovio says, "Uuuuuuyyyyyyy!
"Going on a trip togethr doesn't mean anything.."
Maybe so, but can anybody say "appearance of impropriety"?
What is disturbing about this is that Zayas and Cortezhave used the HealthSmart lawsuit to show how they are defending the interest of Children,yea right, when their own actions and patterns of behavior are against the best interest of Children, teachers and employees of BISD. For exmaple, where does a company with no ties to the valley and with only 700 lives, get a contarct for over 7,600 lives (US), no experience,no track record and they get a 40million dollar contract, that JUNKET TO Costa Rica PAID OFF and it did pay down our 100 million dollar defict.
BISD never had a contract with Travelers for any health insurance in the 90's. You need to get your facts before you start naming names. Carey Malek has been involved with BISD insurance and other Brownsville contracts with several companies but not with Travelers and Brownsville. What about the Cowboys football game in Parkers box that was attended by several board members after Healthsmart got the contract. Also what ties to the valley did health smart have except the agent in Harlingen?
In the Sunday Herald you will see that both Powers and Escobedo have gotten contributions this year from Colonial Insurance which has a current contract with BISD. Also Escobedo in 2008 had a contribution from Ted Parker who was then then Health Smart. Also it shows that Dr. Jimenez has contributed to his employee Mr Escobedo's campaign so I doubt he is having a party for Cortez.
WHERE THERE'S SMOKE THERE'S FIRE. LET'S START OVER AND VOTE THEM OUT.
No one mentioned Travelers we are referring to Mutual Assurance a small very small company with only 700 lives, no contract relationships with Hospitals, except Doctors Hospital where Mr. Jiminez was fired for irregularities rgarding one million dollars, who is now throwing a fund raiser for Cortez and Zayas with Special Guest Joe Rod, do you think we here in Brownsville are going to fall for this shithole corrupt money making screw the Children Trustees, Zayas and Cortez, not me calling all friends vote against the three Trustees Zayas, Cortez, Powers.
Still the appearance of impropriety?
Yes there was a mention of Travelers saying that Mr. Maleck was with them when they had the BISD contract. As I said before Travelers did not have a contract for medical insurance with BISD in the 90's. The PPO being used by the contract with Mutual Assurance did have a relationship with the hospitals.
Zayas and Cortez are using the insurance lawsuit that will probably be lost and cost us taxpayers more money, as a smokescreen to hide their failure as BISD Trustees. What about the budget deficit, the huge legal fees, the lawsuits against these guys,the illegal campaign contributions and the abuse at Special Needs and the fact that over 400 BISD have still not been diagnosed,as required by LAW.
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