Daley: I don't know why city slow to act

Pair tied to set-aside program should have been ousted, he says

Mayor Daley said Thursday he has no idea who dropped the ball, but this much is clear: an African-American businessman accused this week of being a "front" for Panda Express and Antoin "Tony" Rezko, a top fund-raiser for Gov. Blagojevich, should have been stripped of his minority business certification years ago.

"They should have done the same thing three years ago that they did now," the mayor said.

Daley was reacting to a Chicago Sun-Times report about Jabir Herbert Muhammad, an African-American businessman who admitted to a city compliance officer in 2002 that he was not running day-to-day operations of two Panda Express restaurants at O'Hare as required by the city. Muhammad's company, Crucial Inc., won the O'Hare concessions in part because it was certified as a minority-owned firm.

Muhammad owns 55 percent of Crucial while Rezko owns 45 percent. Yet Muhammad told the compliance officer that Rezko handled most of the business. The officer concluded that Muhammad "seems to be a front" used by Panda Express to open businesses at O'Hare -- but no action was taken by the city until this week.

Tough questions

Daley was hard-pressed to explain why the July 31, 2002, report by the compliance officer was ignored -- and attempted to shift the focus to former Chief Procurement Officer David Malone.

Asked why his administration waited until this week to take action against Crucial, the mayor said, "Well, I don't know. You talked to Malone yesterday. I don't know. They should always look at compliance officers' site visit reports. It's hard to determine" who dropped the ball.

Rezko, through a spokesman, said he believed he could appeal the city's finding and continue to do business at O'Hare.

"Mr. Rezko has the utmost respect for Mayor Daley. . . . That same respect applies to the city's procurement process. Once he returns from an overseas business trip, he will tend to this matter and work to resolve any outstanding issues," said Guy Chipparoni, a spokesman for Rezko Concessions.

Rezko also is getting renewed scrutiny from Cook County officials, who say they plan to look into a separate Rezko-tied firm that does county business.

The company, Crucial Communications, is a minority subcontractor for SBC on a pay-telephone contract at Cook County Jail. Rezko and Muhammad are listed as partners in the firm.

Crucial Communications' minority-owned status with the county was recertified in September, but Cook County Board President John Stroger has moved to review the firm's minority-owned designation in response to the city's actions.

"We're looking to make sure there is no change in any of the things that would have established them as minority owned, primarily the firm's ownership and control," Stroger spokeswoman Caryn Stancik said.

Six Rezkos on county payrolls

Besides being a major fund-raiser and adviser for Blagojevich, Rezko has been a big supporter of Stroger, Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) and former GOP Gov. Jim Edgar. There are six Rezkos on Cook County payrolls, including Rezko's wife, Rita, who is on the Employee Appeals Board.

Rezko's development company, Rezmar, has given $1,000 to Daley's campaign and $5,000 to his brother John Daley, a Cook County commissioner.

Meanwhile at City Hall, there was yet another indication that the "total scrubbing" of the set-aside program that the Daley administration promised was well under way -- with a particular focus on O'Hare.

'Are you a woman?'

Carlyn Berghoff, listed as the owner of the Berghoff Catering Inc., which operates the Berghoff Cafe Restaurant at O'Hare, said city officials have questioned her closely about whether her company is a legitimate women's business enterprise.

"They've been looking at our operation. They asked, Are you a woman?' I'm like, Yeah, I'm a woman.' My brother, Peter Berghoff, does the daily operations. I coach and manage the general manager. I handle all of the accounts payable, receivable and payroll out of my office. I work on menu changes and menu prices. I am not physically out there. The staff comes to my office for meetings," Carlyn Berghoff said. "We are not one of the contracts they need to be concerned about."

Contributing: Steve Patterson