Nothing in Pocomoke will change until 'Boss Hogg' Russ Blake is removed from office.

There have been a few requests that I write more articles about local news here in Pocomoke City. I agree that we have gotten into topics of national politics and other things but we are a local blog.

The stated purpose of the Pocomoke Tattler and my blogging is to expose the open corruption at City Hall and rid the citizens of our un-elected dictator, City Manager “Boss Hogg” Russ Blake who has ruled Pocomoke City as his private fiefdom for 33-years.

Did you know the average term for a city manager is 3 to 7 years for two basic reasons?

First: The position is a political appointee and as we have all seen in Washington DC over the past few weeks that when a new administration takes office, new people are ‘appointed’ to head up various departments old ones removed, its the way of the world.

Has anyone asked their councilman or mayor why there has not been a new City Manager appointed in the past 33-years?

Second: The reason for rotating a city manager every 3 to 7 years is the potential to amass too much power in controlling a government entity by one person who answers to no one.

That is exactly what has happened to Pocomoke City in allowing one man to run the city whom is not accountable to the voters or citizens and has been given a license to steal by the elected officials.

When he is occasionally “caught” and exposed by citizens, like for adjusting his utility bills on personal rental properties down to virtually nothing, he simply says oops I made a mistake and pays the money back.

What about everything he has NOT been caught for?

The Pocomoke City Council has never enacted a law or ordinance that requires true disclosure by city employees if they have ANY interest in any business entity that does ANY business with the city. In the non-corrupt government there are regulations that require disclosure or ANY type of ownership. (Even Salisbury requires disclosures)

Example:

Boss Hogg owns 500 shares of common stock in Microsoft and the city purchases Microsoft windows and office products. The disclosure would look like:

I own 500 shares of common stock in Microsoft that were purchased through the stock exchange and are part of my retirement portfolio. The ownership of this stock is a fractional percentage of the company and any purchases or service contracts with the city do not create a specific cash flow or personal profit for me or the immediate members of my family.

Or another example could be:

I am the managing member or majority shareholder of XYZ, LLC that has been contracted by the city to perform $2 million dollars worth of work at the DelMarVa Discovery Center. I am a member of the Board of Directors at the Discovery Center. Due to my position as City Manager I am personally responsible for obtaining the $2-million dollars in government grants that will pay for these services.

As majority owner of XYZ, LLC based on our bid for the project being closed and non-competitive, I will personally profit $800,000.00 for simply steering this contract using public funds because there is zero accountability required of me.

Non-corrupt communities have disclosure ordinances on the books but here in Pocomoke City it would probably cost Boss Hogg and his cronies, thousands to millions if they had to make this type of disclosure.

Example of open corruption: Boss Hogg should have been terminated on the spot for self-dealing with the employment contracts he wrote and had the Mayor and council sign on the eve of Mike McDermott’s first election.

Mayor McDermott did not have the cajones to insist on Boss Hoggs termination, letting down each and every person who voted for him in the belief he would keep his word to clean house at City Hall.

Boss Hogg destroyed his incriminating employment contract, while it was under formal request to be disclosed by a properly submitted Maryland Public Information Act request. Destruction of government documents is a criminal offense carrying penalties of fines and imprisonment, yet Boss Hogg was not given so much as a public admonishment or reprimand for this criminal act.

I have recently been asked why I sound like a broken record constantly harping about City Manager ‘Boss Hogg’ Russ Blake by stating that nothing in Pocomoke City will change until Boss Hogg is removed from office.

The answer is simple:

Boss Hogg is still a criminal.

Boss Hogg is still the longest sitting City Manager in the history of the United States of America.

Boss Hogg continues to darken the doorways of Pocomoke City Hall.

Nothing in Pocomoke will change until Russ Blake is removed from office.

It’s Pocomoke…