An open letter to Gov. Andrew Cuomo:
For three of the most powerful men in our state to be involved in using $103,000 to quiet several female staffers and include $32,000, supposedly provided by the accused, proves there is something wrong and that this should be looked into immediately.
It is my understanding that you have placed this in the hands of a commission to investigate. How long will this take?
When the state Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver (D-Manhattan) admits he mishandled the problem but state Attorney General Eric Schneiderman apparently signed off on the deal and state Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli approved the payment, something is wrong with those decisions.
The Sept. 14-20 Press of Southeast Queens article “Sexual harassment in era of political correctness” best expressed my sentiment regarding the terrible incident in our state. We deserve better than this. Your promise to clean up Albany helped to get you elected. To drop this investigation in the hands of Albany operatives is, in my estimation, no way to begin cleaning the swamp.
Maybe a federal investigation is needed and, while the federal investigators are here, they may need to look at a problem in the City Council. This involves Councilman James Sanders Jr. (D-Jamaica), whose former chief of staff was slapped by the city Conflicts of Interest Board for running a nonprofit that was getting taxpayer cash from his boss.
If this is true, it is more than a question of honest ignorance on the part of the former chief of staff but indulgence of the councilman to provide the funds.
Bishop Charles Norris Sr.
Pastor Emeritus
Bethesda Missionary Baptist Church
Jamaica
