\u2018Where\u2019s the money?\u2019 isn\u2019t the only issue<\/p>\n
About 30 minutes into the public meeting, it became clear that a lack of communication was part of the issue. Council President Brian Burke said that it was important to work together \u2014 but also that he didn\u2019t appreciate seeing Rongione\u2019s proof of a fully funded ARPA coffer on CBS3 first.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs we work together, we have asked for things. We have received them. We\u2019ve had miscommunications, but to receive this wonderful letter today where [reporter] Joe Holden posted it first is not transparency,\u201d Burke said.<\/p>\n
He tore into the independent audit proposed by Keffer because she did not publicly disclose the company\u2019s name in her announcement.<\/p>\n
One member of the public contested the validity of Rongione\u2019s letter from the Pennsylvania Local Government Investment Trust. Gary Merron \u2014 the township\u2019s former finance director, who resigned over the weekend \u2014 came to the podium and cited his 40 years of experience as a certified public accountant.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis particular cash crisis is just the first in what I fear will be a continuing parade of management mistakes if action is not taken. This, in large part, is why I tendered my resignation,\u201d Merron said.<\/p>\n
He had scathing words for chief administrative officers past and present, who he believed were \u201cunfit\u201d for their jobs, having \u201cneglected\u201d proper financial practices over the years.<\/p>\n
\u201cUpper Darby is a $90 million-a-year enterprise whose accounting systems and methods more closely resemble that of a Kool-Aid stand,\u201d Merron said.<\/p>\n
Merron categorized the letter that Rongione provided from the Pennsylvania Local Government Investment Trust as \u201cconvenient,\u201d considering that as of Jan. 28, the last time Merron was in the township building, \u201cthis account did not exist.\u201d Merron said the money was moved from special-purpose township bank accounts to produce this result, which is why he believes any audit done on township finances should report to the council and not to the administration.<\/p>\n
Though Merron wasn\u2019t the only person expressing concern over transparency, some community members, as well as township employees and their families, wanted the attention to be focused on making sure municipal workers would be paid.<\/p>\n
Resident Jennifer Hallam admonished council members for engaging in \u201cpolitical nonsense.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t care when that documentation was produced \u2026 the money is there. There is no money that\u2019s lost. We know where our money is, OK? OK, so we need the council to allocate that money so that people can get paid, so that I can stay at home and do my job and get paid for the hours that I just took off here so that our streets get cleaned up, the trash can get picked up, and we can do good things for this township,\u201d Hallam said.<\/p>\n
Resident Kyle McIntyre told the council that while he initially had questions about the money after the previous meeting, he felt as if the letter Rongione provided was enough to pass the ordinance allocating the $6 million. However, he had criticism for all the elected leaders in the room for the way they had conducted themself over the past week.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe way that council treats each other, the way that council treats the administration, and vice versa, is an embarrassment to this township. And in all honesty, I don\u2019t know how some of you even showed your face today,\u201d McIntyre said.<\/p>\n
Given the infighting, he said his biggest fear was that local government was becoming more like its federal counterpart.<\/p>\n