At the April 26, 2014 Candidate’s Forum held by Southeast Oneida Tribal Services (SEOTS) BC Chair Ed Delgado stated:
I’m Ed Delgado. I’m current Chairman. I’m running for re-election. My platform: my grandson…we were walking out of Walmart a few months ago. He’s four-years-old, and he reached into his pocket as we were leaving and gave me some gum and he says, “This is bothering me. Could you give this back?” And he said, “I don’t deal like that. I don’t deal like stealing. I don’t deal like being dishonest. I don’t deal in all those things that we shouldn’t do.” I thought that was great for a four-year-old. And that’s my platform. You should know who I am by now.
However, Ed Delgado was spotted walking from a parked Tribal vehicle with license plate number N300 on his way to the SEOTS forum and the gas tank cover was not closed.
Beyond that, Ed’s profile on OTIWELECT.com lists his contact email as edelgado@oneidanation.org, which happens to be his Oneida Tribal work email address as BC Chair, so apparently he’s using his Tribal work email for campaign purposes.
The Oneida Fleet Management Policy states:
Article 4-1. Tribal vehicles are not permitted to be used for personal use including any commuting miles.
The Oneida Election Law states:
2.3-5 “Campaigning” shall mean all efforts designed to influence Tribal Members to support or reject a particular Tribal Candidate including, without limitation, advertising, rallying, public speaking, or other communications with Tribal Members.
2.5-9 (c) Employees of the Tribe shall not engage in campaigning for Tribal offices during work hours. Tribal employees shall be subject to disciplinary action under the personnel policies and procedures for political campaigning during work hours.
The Oneida Code of Ethics states:
3.1-1. Policy and Purposes. It is the policy of the Oneida Tribe of Indians of Wisconsin to promote the highest ethical conduct in all of its elected and appointed officials, and employees. This Code of Ethics represents a beginning, it is the very minimum standard of conduct which is expected. This Code is intended to create a base from which all persons are expected to work upwards and strive to work toward improving the health, safety and welfare of the Oneida Nation, citizens of the Nation, employees of the Tribe, and persons living in and around the jurisdiction of the Oneida Tribe of Indians of Wisconsin.
3.3-1. Government. All government officials shall be subject to the Code of Ethics as set forth herein and to the intent of the code as set forth above.
3.3-2. The Code of Ethics shall be as set out below, recognizing that the concept of ethical conduct encompasses action as well as inaction, and represents an area of self regulation. Provided further, that it is the policy of government officials to demonstrate the highest standards of personal integrity, truthfulness, honesty, and fortitude in all public activities in order to inspire public confidence and trust in the governmental officials of the Oneida Tribe of Indians of Wisconsin.
3.3-3. The following shall govern the interaction between government officials and their constituents, co-officials, and employees:
(c) A government official should use the following standards in relation to the duties of office
(1) adhere to the laws, customs, and traditions of the Tribe
Did Ed Delgado use a Tribal vehicle for his own personal campaign purposes because his vehicle(s) lack insurance coverage?
In any case, by utilizing both a Tribal vehicle and his Tribal work email for his own personal campaign purposes it appears that BC Chair Ed Delgado may have violated the Oneida Fleet Management Policy, the Oneida Election Law, and the Oneida Code of Ethics by misappropriating Tribal resources.
Apparently Ed Delgado could learn a lot from a four-year-old.
UPDATE: This information was given to the Election Board and Tribal Vehicle Fleet Manager Rick Fuss, and is now being looked into by both Election Board Chair Vicki Cornelius and BC Vice-Chair Greg Matson.
UPDATE 2: Ed’s profile on OTIWELECT.com has been updated to remove his work email address and lists a phone number instead.
UPDATE 3: Here’s what Vice-Chair Greg Matson had to say today:
I have spoken to the law wing and they have had a conversation with the Chairman. In a nutshell, there is not a policy that is attached to the Chairmanship vehicle other than his or her own discretion. The message to the Current Chair was to use discretion that does [not] reflect the abuse of a privilege. … I will bring it to the full committee the next time we get together this week and it will need to be a collective decision to take action. Thank you.
