Reel Wamps

Starting out

God bless you if you are able to understand the document called the “Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe FY 2012 Proposed Budget January 30, 2012.”  If you have some training or experience in finance or accounting (and I don’t), you may have some insight into the budget.  I will have to rely on the fact that I am both literate and numerate to help me to establish a beach head on this strange shore.  I am at this time reviewing the figures and trying to reconcile them and discover some rationale behind them.  There are some difficulties in doing so, since they decided to mix the budgets of grant programs, HUD loans, and “predevelopement,” so I will try to dissect them.

Busting down the door

To give some scale to this analysis, I want to use the Town of Mashpee 2010 Annual Report’s proposed 2011 annual budget.  Unfortunately, the 2011 Report is not yet out, but this should work.  The Town of Mashpee, with a population of 14,228 in the latest census, requested a budget of $47,475,436.  On the other hand, The Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe, with a membership in the 2,000 range, has requested a budget of $30,764,669, about two thirds the town budget for about one seventh the population.  Even more puzzling is the town’s figure of $246,000 for “legal, engineering, and consultants,” while the Tribe’s “professional services” and legal” items add up to $11,356,177.   This is just a sampling.

What we need to keep in mind is that The town runs three schools, maintains roads and infrastructure.  They will respond to emergency calls with police cruisers, fire trucks, ambulances, and the attendant personnel.  The Tribe does none of the above.

Where do we go from here?

Well, of course, we have to demand, and continue to demand,  answers.  The breakdowns of the grant programs are very detailed, but what we need is breakdowns of those big items: legal, professional services, and salaries.  We need to know exactly how much Tribal Council members receive in salaries plus whatever other emoluments and fees they may receive.  We need to have a report like the Town of Mashpee publishes, including a listing of all salaries and payments to individuals as in the Mashpee report, I don’t care if it’s a nickel.  They owe us that.

I will be presenting my findings in a form that ordinary people can understand.  There will be pie charts and side by side comparisons of equivalent salaries and expenses for the Town of Mashpee and the Tribe.  I think I am going to go through a lot of coffee—and fudge

 MASHPEE WAMPANOAG TRIBAL COURT

Nellie Hicks Ramos,

vs.

Plaintiff

Patricia Keliinui, 2009 Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe Election Committee Chairman

Defendant

COMPLAINT

Plaintiff alleges:

1. Defendant failed to fully perform their duties as required by the Constitution under Art. IV, and Art. III, section 8, Election Ordinance, Section 1, requiring election records be kept and archived following an election.

2. Because of the Election Committee Chairman’s  negligence, the voter list was never seen after the 2009 election, the ballot box was not properly secured, and there was evidence of tampering and the fact that pending voters, were allowed to vote illegally, has disqualified the election of February 8, 2009

3. As a result, the voter list/sign in sheet has never been produced in order to verify the results of the 2009 election, and the ballots and other election materials have disappeared.

4. Further, Nellie Hicks Ramos challenged the election results in a letter. Chairperson Keliinui failed to follow Election Ordinance procedures for resolution of an election dispute by allowing the Elders of the Tribe, a review, as dictated by the law.  Because of the time constraints set out in the ordinance, the action of the Chairwoman amounts to substantial breach of the responsibility of her office.

THEREFORE, plaintiff(s) pray(s) for judgment against defendant as follows:

1. That the voter list, sign-in sheets, ballots, and all other election materials for the Mashpee Tribe February 8, 2009 election be produced in accordance with the recordkeeping requirements of the Election Ordinance Section 1, and that the voter participants be validated as eligible to participate in the Mashpee Wampanoag tribal election.

DATED this 17^th day of January, 2012.

Nellie Hicks Ramos

 ELDER ASKS COURT FOR PROOF THAT CROMWELL ADMINISTRATION IS LEGAL

Mashpee Wampanoag Council Offices—Tribal Elder Nellie Hicks Ramos filed a complaint with the Tribal Court detailing Elections Chair Patricia Keliinui’s failure to deliver a clean election in February 2009. The complaint also outlines 8 constitutional violations under her watch alleging that the Cromwell Administration took charge of the tribe illegally.

After years of asking for investigations, voter sign in sheets, and a voter list that was believed to be loaded with illegal voters, the Cromwell Administration, has failed to produce the documents that would validate or disqualify the February 2009 election.

Hicks Ramos wants the Tribal Court to force Cromwell to produce the documents for review to prove that his ticket was duly elected. The Tribal Courts (one judge now, instead of 3) record of is dubious at best.  The court waited over 15 months to respond to another clear cut election issue, allowing two elections to pass before rendering an opinion, not a ruling, for the administration.

Numerous procedural and legal violations occurred during the election allowing for voter fraud:

• Prior to the election, Keliinui released the voter list to the office manager, instead of keeping it in her possession. This allowed the voter sign-in sheet to be loaded with ineligible voters supporting the Cromwell ticket.
• Keliinui excluded the genealogists and membership officials from the Election Day process. These people could discern enrolled members from illegal voters on sight. This was standard procedure until her election in February 2009.
• The chaos of Election Day was fraught with the failure to execute the most basic emergency procedures to prevent voter fraud. With the onslaught of hundreds of new, unidentifiable voters, Keliinui failed to require workers to ask for identification of any kind.
• With an eligible voter list of approximately 725 voters,  it is a virtual  impossibility to have voter turnout of 600 voters when over 250 of those voters live beyond New York.  The voter list was clearly padded with ineligible (people waiting to get on the rolls) members.
• Keliinui’s most significant violation was the rejection of the timely request filed by Hicks Ramos. The constitution does not allow her or the committee to act. It requires an Elders tribunal to make the decision.  Keliinui resigned shortly thereafter.
• Cromwell certified his own election.
• All of these violations disqualify the Election for clear constitutional violations.

In December 2011, Bureau of Indian Affairs Attorney Michael R. Smith, Deputy Bureau Director of Field Operations was also updated and made aware of these and a  long list of financial constitutional violations accompanied by a 6 page overview and 70 pages of backup.  During two previous 2009 meetings with the BIA, Elders were told that constitutional violations would justify Bureau intervention.  The tribe is in limbo status because it does not have land in trust meaning there is no legitimate legal authority to address tribal complaints accept the state and federal governments.  This is the reason for requesting BIA intervention.

 Simple solution: Let Patty Oakley look at the voter sign in sheet.  She knows who was eligible to vote and who was not.  All that’s needed is one ineligible voter  to disqualify the 2009 election.  Also, Yvonne’s suit filed with  the contract judge also disqualifies the election by the judges’ own admission, because it allowed the shunned to vote, over ruling the membership committee. The judge rendered an opinion, not a ruling, which was worthless in terms of its authority. The Membership Committee has final authority according to  the Mashpee Wampanoag Constitution, and they voted no.

Quite mess indeed.  Too bad we’ve been ruled by an illegal authority all  these years.

If you need more proof that Cedric and his gang are in over their heads, look at these legal bills.

Mark Tilden, who has been working for them since 2009, and left NARF under questionable circumstances,  made $268,932.79 in 9 months last year. All that money to try to push the Federal Charter  that failed and get that paper work from Aunt Dart.  That didn’t happen either.

If you think Cedric’s on top of this gaming thing (and we know you don’t), look at his hiring of a Delahunt legal pal named Stephen Burr who’s supposed to be looking for casino land and handling transactions and whatnot for $58o an hour.  They brought him on back in December and he still hasn’t invoiced the tribe according to the most trustworthy Mark Harding. Pile on !!!!! Cause the Council’s so dumb, everyone needs to get a piece.

Little late ain’t it?

They also hired the Seneca lawyer around the same time, who was working for that tribe when Genting was charging them 28%.  He  made $700k a year. Who do you think he’s working for?

They also hired a person to verify our connection to land… something that took years by a real expert who did it on Middleboro.  Why do it now? Why didn’t you do it a year ago.? Oh shoot….that would mean you had the tribe’s best interest at heart.   It means it’s just more money out the window for someone to invoice the tribe for work that is pretense. Land in trust takes years…everyone seems to know that but Ceddie . He’s just trying to pretend he’s interested in completing our sovereignty with this phoney effort. And besides the woman is a friend of Mark, Paula and Ramona.  Exactly. Enough said.  We still don’t know what  Ramona did with ancient remains taken from museums.  Try to get to the bottom of that.

And of course Lou Catarina, Cedric’s brain,  makes about $12k a month chauffeuring Cedric around and giving him bad advice.

Fall River, Raynham, Plymouth and Bumf—. the journey continues as the clock ticks and the court scrutinizes.

At this  point the non Mashpee are getting a lot of money very late in the game.  Of course the commercial casino only benefits paid council members, because they get paid to give us up and keep a salary .  Lovely.

It’s so bad you just can’t resist talking about it….like Groundhog Day.

When people apply for debit cards the company warns of fraud and the potential for illegal access to to bank accounts.  Well the officers of the tribe have debit cards.  Cedric Cromwell, Mark Harding, Marie Tah Tah, and Aaron Tobey.  It’s the  ultimate theft of cash from tribal coffers. There’s no way to trace the cash withdrawn, that’s why governments do not   issue debit cards to anyone. Course there are no rules with the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe, and the White people are letting it go unchecked laughing.  We have come full circle.

It’s so illegal.

Debit me on Bro

So ask Cedric about that.  Maybe he can explain it in one of his ridiculous update letters.  Hundreds of thousands of dollars already spent on the American Express and now on debit cards on the tribal account.

Unlike the Fisherman’s Fund that had a long list of tribal ( and council ) members benefiting from the original investors, who really helped tribal members with their bills and basics …like food.  This Chairman pays himself and council members, only…. who do nothing.  Nothing, nothing. Pimping the tribe to the Chinese.

Back when times were hard, not that long ago, and the Mashpee took care of  themselves, a certain family was at the head of the line asking for an ” order ” and that order kept them from starving because they couldn’t hunt  or fish to feed their families.  That’s what we did for each other and turned our heads to the foolishness and concentrated on staying alive.

That was how it was.  We shrugged and went on.  Each family had a role.   Each family did certain things.

The politicians, the keepers of traditions, the hunters and fisherman, the educated ones. They respected each others roles and didn’t get in the others lanes…..And there were the scoundrels then…that are still scoundrels today… lying and pontificating on TV.  Making things up. That’s the family that didn’t do a damned thing and we all know who that  was…is.

So here we are with the worst at the helm.  No one would ever have thought it.

Now they are in charge and they have brought us nothing but shame and disgrace. Keep asking ” Grungy Boy ” them

questions. Keep asking.

While they keep getting paid.

I found this news item in the  Enterprise News.  It’s not so much the news item itself, but the reactions to it.  So Genting is going to build a casino in Bridgewater and the Tribe will take all the heat.  Good deal, Cedric.  Thanks for nothing.