10/15/2014
In an August plea deal with a former Fattah political hand, Gregory Naylor, prosecutors said the alliance's chief executive wrote a $500,000 check to a private company in 2008, moving money that would eventually help pay back the loan.
Jackson was chief operating officer of the alliance at the time, though he has not been cited in the plea documents, either directly or indirectly. Fattah and the alliance are cited only as "Elected Official A" and "Nonprofit 1." Fattah, who has not been charged with a crime, has said he acted properly at all times.
"There are hundreds of people who worked" at the alliance, Fattah said in a telephone interview Tuesday. "I hope no one is trying to smear anyone." Jackson's "name has never been involved in any of this."
He added that Jackson "played an important role at the alliance" and that he was "extraordinarily proud" of its work.
Jackson, in an interview, said he "was not aware of any wrongdoing that's been reported in the newspaper" involving the alliance, which he said was now dormant.
"My main job and focus there was to ensure that our programs operated and operated well," he said, "and I'm really proud of the track record that we have in sending thousands of kids to college."
Asked how he would not know about a $500,000 payment from the alliance, Jackson said: "I wasn't chief financial officer, I was chief operating officer."
Fattah's departing chief of staff, Maisha Leek, has taken a senior administrative position at Howard University.
Jackson's hiring was first reported by LegiStorm, a nonpartisan group that tracks congressional salaries and other spending. He started Oct. 1.
Jackson, 46, grew up in the district, in Southwest Philadelphia. He was an intern for Fattah when Fattah was a state senator and has worked as a school principal and nonprofit executive for years. Along with serving as COO of the alliance from 2005 to 2009, he has held top positions with the YMCA of Philadelphia & Vicinity and, most recently, the College Settlement of Philadelphia, an educational program.
Fattah noted that he met Leek when she was in AmeriCorps, a program whose creation he cosponsored, and that Jackson won a scholarship through a nonprofit he founded.
"There's no other person in the Congress who could hire someone who is literally a product of their work," Fattah said, "and I've done it twice now."
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Rep. Chaka Fattah. Staff file photo
WASHINGTON - Rep. Chaka Fattah's new chief of staff comes from a familiar place. He is the former chief operating officer of a nonprofit that Fattah founded - and that federal prosecutors say was at the center of a scheme to help the congressman repay an illegal campaign loan.
Fattah, a Philadelphia Democrat, said he hired Roger Jackson, whom he has known for close to 30 years, because he was "a great guy who has done extraordinary work for a number of organizations."
Among the groups Jackson has played a top role in was the Educational Advancement Alliance, a charity Fattah created to help boost educational opportunities among people in need. It has given out 20,000 college scholarships, Fattah said, and it hosts an annual higher-education conference in his name.
Jackson, who was among the many who won scholarships from the group, later became an alliance executive.
Prosecutors say the alliance, which received millions in federal dollars through Fattah, played a key role in a plan to repay an illegal campaign loan Fattah received while running for mayor in 2007.Fattah, a Philadelphia Democrat, said he hired Roger Jackson, whom he has known for close to 30 years, because he was "a great guy who has done extraordinary work for a number of organizations."
Among the groups Jackson has played a top role in was the Educational Advancement Alliance, a charity Fattah created to help boost educational opportunities among people in need. It has given out 20,000 college scholarships, Fattah said, and it hosts an annual higher-education conference in his name.
Jackson, who was among the many who won scholarships from the group, later became an alliance executive.
In an August plea deal with a former Fattah political hand, Gregory Naylor, prosecutors said the alliance's chief executive wrote a $500,000 check to a private company in 2008, moving money that would eventually help pay back the loan.
Jackson was chief operating officer of the alliance at the time, though he has not been cited in the plea documents, either directly or indirectly. Fattah and the alliance are cited only as "Elected Official A" and "Nonprofit 1." Fattah, who has not been charged with a crime, has said he acted properly at all times.
"There are hundreds of people who worked" at the alliance, Fattah said in a telephone interview Tuesday. "I hope no one is trying to smear anyone." Jackson's "name has never been involved in any of this."
He added that Jackson "played an important role at the alliance" and that he was "extraordinarily proud" of its work.
Jackson, in an interview, said he "was not aware of any wrongdoing that's been reported in the newspaper" involving the alliance, which he said was now dormant.
"My main job and focus there was to ensure that our programs operated and operated well," he said, "and I'm really proud of the track record that we have in sending thousands of kids to college."
Asked how he would not know about a $500,000 payment from the alliance, Jackson said: "I wasn't chief financial officer, I was chief operating officer."
Fattah's departing chief of staff, Maisha Leek, has taken a senior administrative position at Howard University.
Jackson's hiring was first reported by LegiStorm, a nonpartisan group that tracks congressional salaries and other spending. He started Oct. 1.
Jackson, 46, grew up in the district, in Southwest Philadelphia. He was an intern for Fattah when Fattah was a state senator and has worked as a school principal and nonprofit executive for years. Along with serving as COO of the alliance from 2005 to 2009, he has held top positions with the YMCA of Philadelphia & Vicinity and, most recently, the College Settlement of Philadelphia, an educational program.
Fattah noted that he met Leek when she was in AmeriCorps, a program whose creation he cosponsored, and that Jackson won a scholarship through a nonprofit he founded.
"There's no other person in the Congress who could hire someone who is literally a product of their work," Fattah said, "and I've done it twice now."
Jackson, who has two master's degrees and is working on his doctorate, will be paid $106,000 a year as Fattah's chief of staff, according to his office.
Asked about working in a sputtering Congress, Jackson said: "I'm an eternal optimist."
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