i L i n d . n e t

Thanks to the Advertiser’s Peter Boylan for an interesting folo concerning the governor’s chief of staff and state administrative director Bob Awana. Boylan reports that Awana owned about a 1/6 share of Saipan Waste Management, which had a landfill contract on Saipan from 2002-2007 which has been investigated as part of an ongoing public corruption probe. The story doesn’t identify the other owners of the company.

I’m reminded of Jim Dooley’s excellent reporting on Awana’s ties to Unity House in the period just prior to Lingle’s successful 2002 run for governor, which now is a reminder of how small the political world is. In March 2005, Dooley reported on a civil lawsuit alleging that Awana was a key figure in the manipulation of Unity House assets for the personal benefit of the Rutledge family.

Awana could not be reached for comment yesterday. His attorney, state Sen. Colleen Hanabusa, D-21st (Nanakuli, Makaha), yesterday said, “I don’t know anything about the suit. I can’t comment.” Hanabusa said in January that Awana testified before a federal grand jury investigating Unity House but was told he was not a target of the investigation.

Aha. Very interesting. In 2005, the soon to be Democratic leader of the State Senate was the attorney representing the Republican governor’s chief of staff. What a small world with interesting bedfellows.

And did you notice the New York Times story yesterday detailing shady practices in the student loan industry which included a specific mention of a deal involving Chaminade University in Honolulu? The story is based on a report just released by Sen. Ted Kennedy. Here’s what the report has to say about Chaminade:

In several situations, marketing investments “paid off” in a quid pro quo arrangement between lenders and schools. For example, a Citibank internal sales report, authored by the account manager for Hawaii and California, describes how the Chaminade University financial aid office requested that Citibank host receptions for admitted students in exchange for business:

Hosted Chaminade Univ Admissions receptions at Citibank branches and [Director of Financial Aid] default vol[ume] to [Citibank subsidiary Student Loan Corporation] based on this support….global loan and admissions receptions to increase guaranteed share. Exhibit 15.

According to Citibank, Chaminade Financial Aid Director Eric Nemoto solicited various benefits from lenders, including expensive print jobs and consultants. At various points, Nemoto asked Citibank to host eight receptions for admitted students at bank branches –the receptions each cost the bank $2,000. The bank acceded to his request with the understanding that Nemoto would “increase [Citibank’s] guaranteed share” of the school’s loan portfolio. While the deal did not apparently work out in Citibank’s favor (its loan volume actually decreased at the school the next year), entering into the quid pro quo agreement clearly violates the inducement prohibition.

Note that although this describes a particular set of transactions with Citibank, it refers to soliciting benefits from “lenders”, plural.

Chaminade officials denied wrongdoing, according to the story.

Chaminade said yesterday that it “does not endorse any particular student lender and at no time has it entered into a ‘quid pro quo’ arrangement with Citibank.”

And thanks to food hound Larry Geller for noting “the rest of the story” about Hawaii’s spoiled milk.