Inquirer Editorial: Hall monitor worth keeping

Stories of local officials using their offices for personal profit are as wearying as they are familiar. The latest concerns Dominic Verdi, a former deputy Licenses and Inspections commissioner who, according to a federal indictment, protected errant bars and strip clubs as long as they patronized the distributor he had a stake in, Chappy's Beer, Butts, and Bets.

The story reinforces the public's worst fears of a City Hall in-crowd that works for itself with little concern for anyone else. Verdi was in charge of shutting down nuisance bars, but he allegedly used his job to shake them down. One strip club owner said to be let off the hook had been charged in the beating death of a patron.

Verdi might still be at it if the city's inspector general hadn't developed key information in the investigation. His indictment is the latest example of the need for an independent, dedicated authority to investigate wrongdoing at City Hall and hand cases over to law enforcement when appropriate.

Unfortunately, City Council has refused to institutionalize the Inspector General's Office and ensure that more corrupt officials are caught. The office currently exists at the whim of the mayor, and future chief executives can't be counted on to share Mayor Nutter's commitment to clean government.

Councilman James Kenney introduced a bill in early 2013 to ask voters to make the office permanent. But Kenney's bill hasn't had a hearing and is dying in committee. If he wants the city to continue fighting corruption, Council President Darrell Clarke should revive the legislation.

The Inspector General's Office has proven that it's worth far more than it costs. In five years, it has conducted 1,000 investigations and saved $35 million in corruption and mismanagement costs. But its job isn't finished, nor will it be when a new mayor takes office.