MIAMI – Shocking allegations made by the wife of a Miami city commissioner about one of her husband’s colleagues grounded city business to a halt Thursday.
“I’m the wife of an elected official and that guy over there is always watching me,” the wife of Commissioner Miguel Gabela, Mariela Gabela, said as she pointed at Commissioner Joe Carollo.
As tensions boiled over, the real losers at Miami City Hall were the public, who had city business to attend to.
“This is not a communist country,” Mariela Gabela said. “(Carollo is) always watching me and his employees (are) always taking photos of me and watching me.”
Mariela Gabela said she has a home video proving that.
“He has the sergeant-at-arms take photos of me and watch me day and night,” she said.
Then, Commissioner Miguel Gabela later said, “I’ve been targeted by the city of Miami code enforcement.”
It was the beginning of the very abrupt end to the whole meeting.
“Why don’t you quit whining?” Carollo taunted Miguel Gabela.
Everyone who had city business wasted time.
“They just pushed my meeting to the next meeting,” James McQueen said.
Zeke Sultan, who also came to the meeting, called the exchange “like a Jerry Springer section.”
Community activist and former commission candidate James Torres said after the meeting, “They need to reallocate themselves back to the real business of the public.”
Back in his office, Commissioner Gabella unspooled allegations that he’s been a target of intimidation since his campaign, more than a year ago. He said it ramped up when he ordered an audit of the Bayfront Park Management Trust that Carollo led for years.
A Wednesday letter from Carollo’s office tells the city manager that Gabela’s personal properties have code violations.
Carollo has consistently denied using city code enforcers to intimidate political rivals, even after losing a multi-million dollar lawsuit over just that to the owners of Ball & Chain.
“This is 2.0 Ball & Chain, what they’re doing to me,” Miguel Gabela said.
The next Miami City Commission meeting is scheduled for June 12 and everyone who had business on that agenda has to come back then.
Meanwhile, Commissioner Gabela said he’s considering getting the Florida Department of Law Enforcement involved.
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