Cano admits that offerings should not have been accepted by SIF employees

Daniel Cano

Of the four employees that were terminated from SIF on Tuesday, public relations officer Mike Hernandez says that the check he received from Kenard Smart, in the sum of five hundred dollars, was a gift for the cordial relationship the organization shared with the contractor during the course of the year.  Admittedly, since SIF has a policy concerning the receipt of such offerings, Cano says that measures should have been taken against the other employees at the time he found out about the gifts.

Daniel Cano, Former Exec. Dir., Social Investment Fund

“The facts are: Mike took money from Mr. Smart and that cannot be tolerated and that is why he was terminated.”

Reporter

“But why didn’t you fire him at the time or make moves to fire him at the time?”

Daniel Cano

“Again, in retrospect, looking back with all that has happened, if I knew all that I know now, of course, instantly.  But at that time we are in the middle of preparing the accessing of some large programs, the amounts that were being declared to us were not what were declared now.  We took the decision that we didn’t want to harm these officers in this way over these gifts that they had reported.  It was a poor decision.  It was a poor decision.  I was at the helm at that time when that decision was taken and I take responsibility for that decision.”

It is also known that Doctor Angel Cal is taking action against Smart for the construction of a house for which Smart was paid to build but was not completed. Cano was the supervisor of the construction; even though SIF’s policies prevent him from taking those side jobs.