There is an ancient story told about Caesar and Pompey, Rome’s greatest generals, who went after one another until their final meeting in battle at Pharsalus in the year 48 BC.
Pompey had 150,000 troops as compared with Caesar’s Legion of 75,000 – and so Pompey on the morning of the battle had his men build a great tent that could seat 5,000 for the victory party he was going to hold later in the evening.
The battle came. Caesar’s Legion routed Pompey’s army.
Caesar ate Pompey’s dinner in Pompey’s tent.
Two months ago, the mayor, and the city comptroller John Pace suspended the city’s chief financial officer Richard Fortucci from his position alleging all kinds of incompetence and evil doing.
The mayor and Pace called for a series of hearings in order to fire Fortucci.
At the end of the hearing process, the Lynn City Council voted unanimously to keep Fortucci on a Councillor Richard Colucci motion to do just that.
So Pace, the man who was going to get Fortucci, ends up like Pompey who was going to get Caesar.
Pace was fired by Fortucci last week.
Fortucci went to work Monday morning inside his office at city hall.
Pace is somewhere entering early retirement and still fuming about the loss of his job.
Pace was fired based on the findings of the hearing held last week.
He refused to accept his culpability in a situation that showed him to have taken money that was not his salary even though he was aware of it.
He claimed that Fortucci had spent $15,000 to get him fired instead of accepting a settlement with Pace.
He accused Fortucci of making questionable financial decisions.
All of that thinking, all those false assertions had been reduced to ashes during the city council hearings held in January.
Council President Tim Phelan told the Journal that the Pace affair was an embarrassment.
“We don’t need this kind of thing taking place in our city. It makes Lynn look bad. The city needs to move in a more positive direction. The head hunt against Richard Fortucci was just that – a head hunt.”
As for Fortucci, he is happy to move forward.
“We are looking for a new comptroller,” he told the Journal.
Colucci said it best, however.
“It is all over and done with. Let’s get on with it,” he said.