During the late 1998s, a pall of gloom descended over the prestigious Olympic Games, due to the allegations that members of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) were being bribed for their vote favoring Salt Lake City as the site of 2002 Winter Olympics.” (Bribery scandal dulls Olympics’ century-old shine, 2001).
The ostentatious gifts bestowed to members of the IOC included cash and in kind, but forced the resignation of the top executive officers of the IOC. Mr. Frank Joklill, President of the SLOC and Dave Johnson, Senior Vice-President were constrained to resign following a spate of scandals that rocked the Olympic body. (McLaughlin, 1991).
The scandal became full blown when, in December 1998, the Swiss IOC member, Mark Hodler alleged that members of the IOC had accepted bribes in favour of their votes. As a result, four investigations became underway- from the International Olympic Committee, the United States Olympic Committee, the Salt Lake Organizing Committee and the United States Department of Justice.
Finally, during December 2003, the investigators presented their reports, and, as a consequence of which, it was seen that “members had accepted more than $1 million in cash, gifts, trips and scholarships from Salt Lake bidders. Ten IOC members were forced to resign or were expelled, and another 10 were sanctioned by their peers. (Samaranch reflects on bid scandal with regret, 2001).
Thus when one is to apply the Salt Lake City Scandal to the Big Town situation it is seen that the organizers were wooing companies to undertake conventions in the city by offering them city contract work in return. This is a form of bribery and is an unethical practice because it is an infringement of the law that states that there are norms and protocols to be followed before contract works are awarded. By offering contract work in return for hoisting conventions, the administration has in effect, prevented genuine contractors from gaining the work, and besides, the performance of those contractors who have been offered the Wild Card needs to be seen, in order to be determined.
The methods adopted by the Big Town city administration are illegal and unethical, very much like the Salt Lake City bribery case in which more than 20 people were indicted.
It is essential that the proposed action needs to be dismantled in order to prevent another Salt Lake City scandal, which seems to be very much in the offing.
References
Bribery scandal dulls Olympics’ century-old shine. (2001). CNN. Web.
McLaughlin, Martin (1999). Salt Lake City bribery scandal the buying of the Olympic Games. Web.
Samaranch reflects on bid scandal with regret. (2001). Wintersports. 2008. Web.