CORRUPTION

Whether it is a Democrat or Republican going shopping with city or money Derby has always had corrupt politicians. Are the choices we have now Tony, Thompson, John or Dina more or less honest as to their views and what they will do if elected or are they going to go shopping with city money?

The reality is that the Staffieri Administration has appointed a political hack who help run the Mayors campaign in 2005. By appointing Joe Pinto who has no experience with housing issues it looks to be a political pay off. Why hire someone in the midst of a scandal who has no experience running a housing authority?

Secondly, Pinto is widely believed to be the blogger known as the Derby Conservative who allowed racist comments to be posted until he was threatened with being sued has no moral authority to lead the agency out of a scandal. Needless to say the Derby Conservative web site is gone. Now this political hack that is suspect for his alleged beliefs is running a housing authority that has strict rules against racism due to the federal money that supports it.

To compound this appointment, Mr. Pinto is not putting an end to the same conference held at a casino where disgraced former authority head Neil Dorso is alleged to have received a $200 plus message then charged this and other personal items to the city.

Now a relative of Alderman Ken Hughes is not only on the housing authority ( no housing experience) but is going to go to the same conference where the alleged massage occurred on Mr. Dorso. These people have no housing experience and nor political skills if they believe that allowing another visit to a casino for a “housing conference” is going to go over in this city.

Mayor Staffieri is receiving bad advice and should take his own stand and remove these people, forbid conference at casinos and pursue every dime from Dorso including the money he is still being paid for no good reason on this so called “leave”.

This is the tip of the corruption iceberg in this city and the Mayor in all fairness walked into to an office that has been a pool of corrupt political deals. Mr. Staffieri deserves the benefit of the doubt but he should change the culture of corruption by making a stand on this issue and remove Joe Pinto who has no business, experience or moral authority to dictate to anyone.