Secrets, Lies and Deceptions

Scandals 9

SECRETS, LIES AND DECEPTION

A common occurrence at UCO is concealing and hiding anything and everything, and doing it without reservation.  Challenge UCO, and they will talk about you in a very libelous way on Israel’s BLOG; slander you whenever they get the opportunity; write about you at will in the UCO Reporter; chop you down at a Delegate’s meeting where they literally control the speaker system, and the President denigrates your reputation by shouting “sit down – you’re out of order”.

Let’s take a look at the Master Insurance Policy, for instance, in which UCO, in compliance with the Bilateral Agreement, is supposedly doing you a tremendous favor by soliciting bid proposals on your behalf from insurance agents.

Ed Ross believed, because of information that he received from reliable sources, that there were improprieties involved in the receiving of bid proposals, including but not limited to, bid rigging.  The entire secret bidding process appeared to smell.  And, this was really of concern because in many budgets as much as 40% could be attributed to master policy premiums.

So, Ross, being most inquisitive, hand-delivered a letter dated February 24, 2011, to UCO, requesting the opportunity to review and perhaps copy the three insurance bid proposals that were submitted (Brown & Brown, Plastridge and The Mack Group).  That request was ignored – no response by e-mail, U.S. mail, telephone or fax.  A second letter dated March 4, 2011, making the same request, was hand-delivered to UCO.  Again it was ignored.  Ross detected something was definitely wrong.

The Insurance Committee, composed of ten or more members, normally require bid proposals to be sealed, stamped on the envelope when received so that they are not delivered late and disqualified, - and then all of them opened at the same time on a specific date, at a specific hour, at a specific place – at a meeting of the Insurance Committee who were duly notified of the bid opening.  This never happened.  None of it happened.  Bids were not date stamped; they were opened separately on different days, and in secrecy.

There were no Insurance Committee minutes taken at the time of the bid opening.  Think about that one for a moment.  A certain bid was opened secretly on a late Friday afternoon and it was approved secretly over that following weekend.  Something was very wrong, for sure.  It appeared that a certain bid was allowed to be “fixed” by the Insurance Committee leaders.  To be very blunt, at the very least,

there was bid manipulation,

Ross was then forced to consult an attorney in order to obtain these requested documents, under Chapter 617 of the Florida statutes.  There were more delays, more stalling by the insurance committee chairperson by executing a letter which basically denied Ross the access to public documents under the ploy of needing agents’ permission to do so.   The sealed bids were, indeed private, so that one bidder could not see what another bidder was submitting.  However, once they were opened, under the law, they became public to any Century Village resident who is part of the insurance program, and most especially to a delegate, who, in fact, is a member of UCO’s Board of Directors.

So, again, these bids, tainted by a lack of proper procedures, were kept secret.  It appears that UCO feels that they are above the law.  It became necessary for Ross’ attorney to send a second letter to the insurance chairperson and told her, without equivocation, that her reluctance to comply with state law could bring her before a judge.

You want information that you’re entitled to receive?  UCO makes you go to an attorney.  Ask Mr. Black and Mrs. Dowling, - they experienced the same thing.  They requested information which they were rightly entitled to, and they were refused.  This was UCO’s standard way of telling you – “GO AWAY”.  They had no choice but to seek legal counsel.

On September 30, 2011, some eight months later, the insurance chairperson hand-delivered a copy of three bid proposals to Ross’ attorney.  The attorney’s letters had requested a copy of the ORIGINAL bid proposals and insurance committee minutes.

Again, secrets and flagrant lies.  The Brown and Brown insurance bid proposal given to Ross was not the original proposal, but rather, the third proposal submitted by Brown and Brown.  Page after page in the proposal clearly reveals that it could not have been possible to submit such information at the time that the bids were originally due.  Mr. Ross has absolute proof that the final bid proposal submitted by Brown & Brown as a conjured up fabrication and made to look like it was supposed to be the original.  It was faked, and this is why the bid proposals were kept so secret.

So, after continuously beating the previous insurance chairperson into the ground, the President appoints someone new to take over the Insurance Committee.   But that is the UCO way, - to smite flat anyone who causes the slightest quiver in the river of deception.   And now, at this time, you have something that appears to be rotten to the core. 

Their cry at UCO is – “We don’t lie about anything.  Come into our offices and we’ll show you whatever you want to see.”  That statement, in itself, is slurring the truth.  After eight months, you really have to ask, - “What were you hiding?  If you didn’t do something illicit or illegal, you would have produced the documents immediately.” 

So, why do hundreds, if not thousands of people distrust UCO?  This insurance fiasco is a typical example of the dominance, egotistical attitude and control, and their secrecy and deception behind closed doors.  And, you know what?  We let it all happen.

Are you a delegate who is a member of UCO’s Board of Directors, or are you conforming to peer pressure?  Don’t just play follow the leader. Think before you vote.  Judge for yourself - you have a right to do that!

Edward J. Ross, AIA, FARA, NCARB

President, Oxford 100 Condominium Association, Inc.

October 31, 2011