And taxpayers were ripped off by a couple of FEMA supervisors in NO. So what else is new. If we hire Haliburton to do it, it is cronism. If we hire local firms to do it, they will rip us off more.
The fact is, that whenever the government gets involved, there are those who are crooked that will try to find ways to rip the taxpayers off. Whether it is contractors, or bureaucrats, ther are always those who will try it. Government is an easy target because they are always ruled by politicians and not businessmen. The politicians are always wanting to cut such waste as inspectors and accountants. It is that way at all levels of government. And the crooks exist in business too, it is just harder to find businessmen that are as stupid as the average politician.
Part of my job is to keep an eye on various contractor jobs because the primary inspectors are so busy they cannot cover everything. Unless you have a skilled construction expert on site at all times, it is easy for the contractor and subcontractors to take shortcuts. Even when there are no shortcuts taken, problems happen. We are having a contractor remove several sections of concrete because they caulked the joints too soon and cracks did not develop in the joints. Construction jobs work both ways. Sometimes the contractor will lose a fortune and sometimes they make a fortune. Lax oversight creates problems for everyone.