Where is the fairness?
On Monday, August 26, I had an evening meeting to attend but never made it because I was glued to the television watching the Personnel Committee meeting of the City Council. The members of this Committee are Sandy Almonte, Chair; Dan Rivera, Vice Chair; Roger Twomey and Frank Moran.
From the very beginning, the inconsistencies were amazing and I could not get away. I have been calling for residents to volunteer and serve on boards and commissions through Rumbo and Crossover. It was satisfying seeing a list of 27 individuals that were recommended by Mayor William Lantigua.
Frank Bonet wrote an article published on page 8 as a resident and taxpayer, appalled at the prejudicial treatment flaunted by the councilors. I hope they are going to either justify or reverse their decisions at the next meeting of Tuesday, September 3rd when the approved nominations are supposed to be ratified by the full council.
There has never been a rule prohibiting municipal employees from participating in local boards and commissions. Frank explained in his article that the Massachusetts Legislature approved the participation of public employees in these organizations. Having gone through so much with some boards unable to have a quorum and the recruiting efforts to get people to serve, having 27 candidates was a huge accomplishment towards seeing this city function properly.
Joanna Infante (Cultural Council) was approved even though she is a city employee. Immediately after her, came Vinicio Frómeta (Airport Commission) who was promptly rejected because he works in the mayor’s office. The same for Giovanni Bonet (Airport Commission) and this time they made it clear he was denied because his father works at City Hall. Then, Patrick Driscoll (Lawrence Housing Authority) who works as a firefighter, was approved; David Meehan (Historical Commission) and Richard Rivera (Zoning Board of Appeals) were both quickly reappointed to their boards with thanks for their past work, even though Rivera works for the Lawrence Public Schools and Meehan retired from his teaching job not long ago.
There were other names that were not decided upon because of a glitch that their paperwork was not included in time for the meeting. I would like to see how Frank Moran’s sister, Dahianara Liranzo (Zoning Board of Appeals), and Melix Bonilla’s wife, Lydia Bonilla (Lawrence Housing Authority), will be treated when they finally get their papers in order. My question is: Why some city employees were approved while others were rejected for that same reason? Also, being related to a city employee should not bar a resident who wants to serve our community.
I have to believe that there is a concerted effort on the part of the councilors to prevent the city from going forward.
Coakley vs Lantigua
Certain radio talkers had a field day with the accusation by the Attorney General Martha Coakley against Mayor William Lantigua. The case is serious and the fine that will be imposed will be humongous! But this is a civil matter, not criminal, and it won’t involve a jail term. Listening to some of the radio programs last week, you would have thought it did.
It is unbelievable the interpretations given to that document by those nitwits. They obviously cannot read English and even though somebody translated it into Spanish, it was easier to read what their minds were predisposed to believe. The big failure was that Lantigua did not declare expenses from his campaign finance funds. The checks to pay bills were legal; he just did not list them on the government’s report.
The same way that he ‘forgot’ to include in-kind contributions or liabilities. Candidates must list everything donated to their campaign, no matter how insignificant with an approximate value, even if it is a platter of fried plantains. That’s just plain sloppy and careless, obviously not surrounding himself with people who know better.
This should serve as a warning to the rest of the political candidates, particularly those with innumerable radio programs promoting their candidacy (this includes also Lantigua) because they should be listed as in-kind contributions from their hosts. Don’t think that because you didn’t pay for it, it doesn’t have to be listed. Another page should be for unpaid bills which are considered liabilities.
Had Lantigua done that, he wouldn’t be the recipient of so much negative publicity.
Shame on the Trib
The Eagle-Tribune should be ashamed for not picking up on the tips I give them, particularly regarding the Lawrence Police Department. Just like I did during the Wilfredo Laboy years, I have been pointing out the Chief’s behavior and incompetence which they have chosen to ignore. They gave him the biggest send-off and, hopefully, if anyone cares in the future to find out how he really damaged this city, a simple Google search on our website would reveal who he really was.
And that was without ever touching on his personal life.
A sour note on St. Alfio
The members of the St. Alfio Society appreciate the participation of the Latino community in their annual event of the Feast of the Three Saints but we still have to learn about respecting others’ cultures. The Verizon truck was next to the Grace Episcopal Church playing Spanish music very loudly and people dancing in the middle of the street. If the opposite was true during Hispanic Week, playing and dancing to American music, we would be incensed. This weekend was for the Italians celebrating their tradition for 90 consecutive years. Verizon was totally out of place.
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