I never fully understood his purpose in the episode or why the writers wanted to build him up to be so mysterious without ever elaborating on him further. He allegedly comes from somewhere "far away", yet he never specifies exactly where - but nevertheless, that detail was still apparently important enough for him to point out. That always bothered me...
And further; what was his endgame in wanting that money invested back into the Nuclear Plant? And why was everyone at City Hall so angry at him for voicing his honest opinion, when he just as easily could've been ignored? Were we, the audience, meant to infer that he had some higher influence over the decision that could've superseded everyone else there? Was he coerced by Smithers to speak on behalf of Mr. Burns, hence his preemptive decision to bring a grappling hook for their escape strategy?
I've come across a million fan theories on him, but none seem to really track 100% with canon. I guess he was just one of those little mysteries the writers threw in to keep the fans guessing and engaging in episode discussion, that's about the only literal explanation I can think of.
