Honolulu City Council Chairman Nestor Garcia is defending his integrity after a TV station revealed a possible conflict of interest.
“Don’t tell me I’m a whore and getting paid off and I’ll do anything for rail,” Garcia told Civil Beat Monday. Garcia was referring to his role on the City Council and his $60,000-a-year job as executive director of the Kapolei Chamber of Commerce, first reported last week by KITV’s Daryl Huff.
The Chamber of Commerce advocates for the city’s rail project, which will begin in the west Oahu community. The Council has oversight of the project, and has authorized its progress.
Garcia, 54, once chairman of the Transportation Committee, took the chamber on as a client in 2009. He says he understands why people are asking questions now. He said he opted to disclose the Kapolei Chamber of Commerce as a client even though the city’s Ethics Commission chairman told him it wasn’t necessary.
“(Ethics Commissioner Chuck) Totto came to me and says, ‘You know you’re not required under the law to disclose this.’”
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