California Attorney General’s Investigation of Dodger Dream Foundation Bolsters Case Against NaFFAA’s Exorbitant Consultants’ Fees

As this writer has said for several years now, the diversion by the controlling clique of the National Federation of Filipino-American Associations (NaFFAA) of meager resources to “consultants’ fees” was highly immoral and irregular, if not illegal.

The Los Angeles Times reported last Saturday, Nov. 13, 2010, of an investigation being conducted by the Office of the Attorney General of California in matter of the Dodgers Dream Foundation of the Los Angeles Dodgers baseball team. The report said that the Dodgers Dream Foundation spent $400,000 out of $1.6-million expenditure for executive compensation. It amounted to 25% of the foundation’s expenditure.

Like the Dodgers Dream Foundation, the NaFFAA is also a public-benefit entity. Both are 501 (C)3 not-for-profit corporations.

As reported by this writer on May 8, 2008, which was just a reprint of a 2004 article in the www.pinoyonboard.com of New York City, the NaFFAA spent nearly 30% of its gross income for 2002 in paying seemingly-scandalous consultants’ fees:

“This writer has exposed the financial abuses in the NaFFAA, like when it paid $132,878 in consultants’ fees in 2002. To read this charge of impropriety and other ‘sins’ of then NaFFAA national chairwoman, Loida Nicolas Lewis, please go to http://www.pinoyonboard.com/2004/0815_naffaa.html. The point of my contention was: How can a business that had gross revenue in 2002 of $445,783 spend $132,878 or 29.81% for consultants’ fees?”

If the California Attorney General thinks that using 25% of a foundation’s expenditure for executive compensation might be illegal, how about the NaFFAA’s controlling clique’s use of nearly 30% of its gross income for consultants’ fees?

To read the entire story about corruption in the NaFFAA, please click on this link,

The “Embezzlement” Issues in the Menorgate/NaFFAAgate Scandals of San Jose

To read the Los Angeles Times report about the Dodgers Dream Foundation, please click this hyperlink:

http://www.latimes.com/sports/la-sp-newswire-20101113,0,7831907.story

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BASEBALL

Dodgers executive is reassigned

H oward Sunkin, the Dodgers executive whose salary from the team's charitable foundation has drawn scrutiny from the California attorney general, has been assigned to oversee the team's community relations.

Of the nearly $1.6 million spent by the Dodgers Dream Foundation in 2007, more than $400,000 was paid to Sunkin, according to federal tax records. In August, the attorney general's office asked the Dodgers to explain the significant allocation of nonprofit funds for executive compensation.

Dodgers spokesman Josh Rawitch said the team has "been cooperating fully" with the investigation. Neither he nor Jim Finefrock, a spokesman for the attorney general, would comment on the status of the investigation.

Sunkin worked as the Dodgers' senior vice president for public affairs from 2004 to 2007. He then moved to the McCourt Group, where he has emerged as the right-hand man to Dodgers owner Frank McCourt.

Sunkin has worked with city leaders and neighborhood groups on planned renovations to Dodger Stadium and proposals for an NFL stadium and other development in the stadium parking lots. With McCourt putting major construction on hold because of what he says is a lack of financing, Dodger staffers were told this week that Sunkin again would oversee community relations.

Rawitch said in a statement that Sunkin would continue to work on civic affairs while "taking a more active role in managing the relationships the team has with more than 5,000 non-profit organizations throughout the city."

— Bill Shaikin UNQUOTE. # # #