As Council Launches Probe, Gandhi's Job Appears Less Secure

Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-D.C.) lent her support to the council's efforts yesterday. In a statement, she said, "I continue to believe that whether the misuse is of local or federal funds intended to benefit residents, the responsibility for investigation and correction lies with the local jurisdiction, not the federal government, except under unusual circumstances."

Gandhi's action against top managers has drawn the ire of several of them and been criticized by community leaders. Two of the ousted managers have said Gandhi is scapegoating them for long-standing problems that predate them.

Matthew Braman, an ousted manager, said yesterday that Gandhi and Ben Lorigo, who has headed the internal investigating unit, should be held accountable. Lorigo is now interim tax office director.

"Gandhi and Lorigo had a greater responsibility for the management failings at OTR than any of the employees they fired," said Braman, who had been the tax office's director of operations since 2004. "Their attempts to deflect blame by throwing others under the bus is becoming obvious to government leaders and citizens."

Thomas Branham, the city's longtime chief assessor, had been serving as interim director of the real property tax administration unit when he was ousted two weeks ago. Branham has said he did not want the interim position and accepted it in July after being pressured by superiors.

In a Nov. 8 letter to Gandhi, Branham's attorney, John M. Clifford, demanded that Branham be reinstated and that Gandhi "publicly acknowledge that he was not responsible for the wrongs that occurred."

Some council members are also questioning the appointment of Lorigo after he testified last week that he had not audited the real property tax division in five years.

"He failed to audit the one division which generates the largest portion of our revenues," said council member Yvette M. Alexander (D-Ward 7). "Gandhi? I'm saying I'm up in the air. A lot of constituents are asking why Gandhi should stay. I'm heavily weighing the reasons."

About his tenure as tax office director, Gandhi said that he was vigilant and that he signed off on all tax refunds exceeding $250,000.

The Post analysis showed that the largest of 15 questionable checks, for $363,382, was issued to a developer whose attorney can find no record of the check or of winning a tax appeal resulting in a refund.

"If [Gandhi's] philosophy is that the person in charge is responsible, it would seem he has effectively fixed blame on himself," Cheh said.

Council member Harry Thomas Jr. (D-Ward 5) said: "I think that he's opened Pandora's box. There seemed to be a subculture operating outside the management controls."

But council member Jack Evans (D-Ward 2), chairman of the Committee on Finance and Revenue, which has oversight of Gandhi's office, did not waver in his support of Gandhi yesterday. "I don't have anything to say. There have been no new revelations that have come out," Evans said.