WASHINGTON, DC – Congressman Bill Delahunt expressed serious concerns about the conclusions of a report prepared for him by the Government Accountability Office (GAO) released today, regarding the contracting practices of the International Broadcasting Bureau’s Office of Cuba Broadcasting (IBB), which operates the Miami-based Radio and Television Martí stations that broadcast to Cuba. 

“The GAO’s findings are extremely troubling. The report says that major contracting decisions did not follow good business practices.” said Delahunt, Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Oversight Subcommittee. “Furthermore, there is insufficient evidence to support hiring and contracting decisions.  With millions of taxpayer dollars spent on these programs it is critical that they be managed with full transparency and accountability -- to do otherwise opens the door to waste, fraud, and abuse.”

For years, the Miami-based Radio and Television Martí stations have been the subject of numerous allegations of political bias, mismanagement, and corruption.   After reviewing this report, Delahunt suggested there are worrisome echoes of problems in another Administration Cuba program, and more work on the Martís will be necessary.

“In 2006, the GAO sounded the alarm regarding a similar lack of transparency and oversight in Administration funding for pro-democracy activities in Cuba,” he said.  “At the time, the GAO revealed that taxpayer money was spent on cashmere sweaters and Sony PlayStations; since then it has been discovered that the chief of staff of the program’s primary grantee stole over $600,000, resulting in an ongoing Department of Justice investigation.”

This GAO inquiry was requested by Delahunt in late 2007 after two apparently unrelated events: the conviction and sentencing of TV Martí’s director of programs for receiving over $100,000 in kickbacks from a contractor, and the decision by IBB in late 2006 to give Radio Mambí and TV Azteca – two private, Miami-based stations – unprecedented contracts to broadcast Radio and TV Martí.

Today’s report is narrow in scope, focusing only on the process by which the Mambí and Azteca contracts were awarded, as well as on the processes by which “talent” is hired for the operation.  However, the GAO is continuing to investigate the broader issues of management, content, audience, and effectiveness, as well as the legality of broadcasting government funded programming via domestic media.

The report found that “IBB’s approach for awarding the Radio Mambí and TV Azteca contracts did not reflect sound business practices in certain key aspects.”  Delahunt said this was of particular concern in the case of Radio Mambí.  Although IBB said the contract was due to the station’s technical capabilities, Mambí is considered one of the most hard-line, politically connected media outlets in Miami – and its utility is questionable since it is reportedly jammed in Havana by the Cuban government.  Delahunt noted that the Mambí contract was allowed to expire, supposedly for budgetary reasons, in February 2008 – when the GAO investigation began.

With regards to the talent contracts, the report found that “OCB’s practices provide limited visibility in soliciting, evaluating, and selecting its talent services contractors.”  Essentially, it is difficult to determine why certain contractors are hired, possibly suggesting political favoritism.

“This report concludes that the IBB and OCB practices that were used in awarding these contracts did not provide the necessary accountability and transparency,” said Delahunt.  “After reviewing this report, it is clear to me that further oversight and continued monitoring is necessary.”

 

 

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