I have often referred to our Queen City as Oz. Recent happenings in the Municipal Government field, the PMUA, and the BOE/PSS have confirmed that this is the land of wonderment.
The Mayor has been found to have illegally used $20,000.00 of municipal funds. However one Councilor has belittled that finding by saying that it was only $5,000.00 of City money and much more was spent to investigate that sum. It does not matter what the amount was it is the legality of the action that is important. All elected officials are sworn to uphold the law not ignore indiscretions by colleagues.
In fact that Councilor is dismissing the $15,000.00 that was restricted for Fourth of July expenses as being inconsequential and not an improper usage of funds.
That citizens have spoken as well as anonymous comments to the blogs against the Council's action in pursuing an investigation as a waste of money implies the existence of a segment of our society who believes that anything you do as long as you can get away with it is OK. Some of these individuals would aspire to be an official part of our government.
No one on the Council has even explained why we taxpayers had to provide the Mayor with an attorney. The investigation was only to find out if there was an illegal action. If so, then if a legal process followed and the Mayor became a defendant it would be then that she would need an lawyer. It would not be the city's responsibility to defend her if it were it fact the injured party.
But, weirdness is not only limited to the Municipal government; according to the findings of another blogger the BOE has been hiding from the public not only expenditures of large sums of monies on claims of unknown nature against the PSS but also failing to conform to many State procedural regulations in various fields.
To compound they have threatened Mrs. Pellum with arrest for attempting to videotape the meetings for not conforming with conditions they have made policy that could make it impossible for any member of the public to to exercise his legal rights implicit in OPRA. WE elected SLAM to correct the fiduciary abuses of the then sitting board. Instead, we have had what seems to be more of the same.
And finally there is the PMUA's Commissioners who having turned a blind eye to the improper use of funds by their administrators are rewarding them with a Million Dollars for "resigning" not for termination without cause. How can they justify this outrage?
What is more bewildering is that various agencies and even the top administration of the State have ignored all these incidents of misgovernment in the land of Oz.
8:00 AM Addendum; It is very disturbing to read in the Courier that Assemblyman and City Party Chairman is quoted to have remarked that the whole investigation was "POLITICAL GRANDSTANDING", and also he called it "A JOKE". In other words he finds nothing wrong in an elected official misusing (illegally) public funds. Green should explain the meaning of his remarks , I am sure that as a respected and long standing leader in State politics he is not condoning the Mayor's actions.
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6 comments:
I think we can change all this by booting the sitting powers that be that have created a "career" out of their public "service" and voting in some Democrats next election cycle...oh, wait...awkward..my apologies.
Please note WHICH residents have come to Sharons side in the past few days, THEY are the ones we need to remember, because THEY are the ones who have something to LOSE if this mayor/machine isn't in power. Basically THEY are on the TAKE. No reasonable person would side with misappropriation of funds.
8:56,You too are anonymous therefor please explain how we can identify the anonymous writers who have defended the Mayor. Yes under certain circumstances we can by legal means identify the physical source of the email but I do not think we have any legal reason to do so.
The only Briggs supporters we know about are those who appeared in some role at the Council meetings.
I'm glad Gerry Green isn't supporting, Sharon, but it seems that $50,000 has been chump change for him over the years. He wouldn't have been in the Assembly for so long if it didn't pay in ways beyond the state check he gets. Like Sharon, he needs to realize that it isn't always about Gerry.
If we are looking to the State to take corrective actions, we have a long wait. Remember how long it took before there was a reaction to our lack of a CFO.
Tom, I am sure that the proverbial snowball in Hell will remain frozen for a long time if its melting is dependent on any of the three parties taking any significant action. Lip service doesn't count.
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