MISSION, Texas – Mission Mayor Armando O’Caña has addressed claims from one of his political opponents that good ethics have not been at the forefront during his first term in the city’s hot seat.
One of his political opponents has claimed O’Caña is the subject of an FBI investigation with regard to a contract the City of Mission entered into with Performance Services, Inc., to update the city’s water utility system. The vote to approve the $20 million project was taken in June 2020 O’Caña was one of the council members who voted “yes.” The vote was 3-2.
Asked how he responds to claims that he received a kickback for his vote, O’Caña said: “Obviously, when you get stoned like that, from the other side, a lot of people begin to doubt. But, I can tell you right away, those that have known me for many, many, years, know that I have a track record and my record has always been clean. And it continues to be clean.”
O’Caña continued: “I have not taken any bribes from anybody and I haven’t given any bribes to anybody. Basically, I do not know where they (my critics) are coming from, other than they are jealous of the progress we have been making for the last four years and the fact that Mission has begin to shine. It is a shame that the negativism begins to override the beautiful city of Mission, as far as that is concerned.”
O’Caña said he could throw dirt also but chooses not to.
“If you look at my side, how many negative ads have you seen? Do I have information about the negativism about my opponents? Oh, definitely. But am I going to share it with you, no. Why? Because we are very positive and we run very positive campaign.”
Asked if he can overcome being “stoned” by his critics, O’Caña said: “I know we are going to override it. First of all, I know we have God’s blessing. The fact that we have God’s blessing and God’s guidance on it, we are always having the shield of Christ with us. The devil can come any time he wants to but they are not going to be successful.”
In the podcast, Mayor O’Caña also spoke about the growth of Mission, both with retail and commercial development. In fact, it has become something of a catchphrase for O’Cana during the election campaign that, “Mission is booming.”
O’Caña pointed out that there was no development on the corner of Business 83 and Shary Road when he took over as mayor. Now, he says, an investor has come in and is constructing over 100 houses valued at $200,000 each. A Circle K is coming at this location, O’Caña said, along with more stores and offices.
One of the biggest private projects underway in Mission is the development of a large industrial park near Anzalduas International Bridge. This is being developed by Killam. O’Caña said he hopes to have a groundbreaking ceremony for this project soon.
Mission’s skyline is changing also, O’Caña pointed out. In a previous story, the Rio Grande Guardian speculated that Mission could have a skyscraper. Asked if that was over-hyping things, O’Caña said it actually helped his efforts to bring more tower blocks to the city. Because of the news article, he said, other developers have approached him and he now has four towers in the works.
O’Caña also gave an update on the Madero International Bridge, fixing Mission’s drainage problems, and beautifying his city’s downtown.
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