Our Readers Respond...

Calls to Federal Corruption Hotline Go Unanswered


Dear Editor:


I am writing you in regards to a story you wrote in an April issue about the FBI’s Public Corruption Hotline, 1-877- END-GRAFT, and the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, Michael J. Garcia’s establishment of this hotline. I would like to share with you my experience in calling the “hotline”.

After several months of building up the courage, I decided to call the hotline in the fall of 2006 to report public corruption that I am aware of. To my dismay all my calls were met by an answering machine only. Hoping that maybe I caught the office at a bad time I called several more times, but the result was always the same. I then decided that although I was trying to remain anonymous, I would have to leave my name and number.

In January of 2007 I left a message advising them that I was aware of public corruption and to please contact me. I never received a call back so two weeks later I left a second message with my name and number again.

The second message also went unanswered. I left a third message sometime in February and even stated that I would be willing to meet with them, and again my message was never answered.

Maybe Michael Garcia awoke a sleeping giant by soliciting this information in Westchester County, or maybe no one cares. I tried to make a difference, but now I’ll have to go and watch as another civil servant enriches his personal life by taking advantage of the public through his civil service appointment.

Anonymous Civil Servant

Mt. Vernon Board of Ed Needs More Than Redirection

Dear Editor:

The Mt. Vernon Board of Education completely supports Mr. Wallace Dunn of Human Resources. This Board is the worst that this city has ever had and everyone is aware, but are afraid to report them. Mr. Dunn is a dictator and the Board will do anything he thinks, says or does. Mr. Dunn was in the system during Superintendent Ross’ tenure, but left for unexplained reasons, and now he is back. What really happened before? Superintendent Brenda Smith does not have a backbone, and supports this bastard. Dunn has realized that this system is weak and has taken full advantage of it. He is simply out of control and he has to be stopped.

It was Mr. Dunn, with former Superintendent Ross a few years back, that called the people of Mt. Vernon “pigs at the croft ”. It is still difficult to believe that Superintendent Brenda Smith brought him back. He especially exploits the Custodian Staff , because the union is so weak. The Custodians and Head Custodians have been
suspended on numerous occasions without a hearing. The teachers and Principals do whatever they please and nothing happens to them, simply because their union will not allow it. The Principals have complete control of the Custodian staff and can do what they want, and Mr. Dunn believes anything they report about the Custodian staff . The good people are leaving the system because it is so bad. When are you going to wake up and fight this parasite?

Mr. Dunn does not post jobs with the civil service, but instead gives them to his family and friends. He even gave his wife a job in the system.

Nepotism is running rampant in this system. Personnel have been transferred to a tested position without taking a test. They do not pick from the list for a Head Custodian, but choose whom they like. They have a circle and if you don’t live within it, you get the shaft.

The Board of Education’s focus should be on education and vocational programs for our children, but I guess they have forgotten who they represent. Our young people are not getting a good education in this system. There is far too much violence at the schools, and not enough of the things kids need. It seems that we are stuck with Mr. Dunn and Aramark.

There are job openings at the Education Center located at 165 No. Columbus Ave.; security, groundsmen and cleaners positions, but these jobs are not posted anywhere. Mayor Davis, where are you?

Concerned Citizens

Save the Trees on the Saw Mill River Parkway

Dear Editor:

Year after year, as I drive up the Saw Mill River Parkway, I can’t help noticing that all its beautiful trees are slowly being choked to death.

Some vine has taken over. It creates viny carpets, covering and muffling the trees. By summer they will look like strange dinosaurs.

Your newspaper’s name says you are a guardian of Westchester. You do a good job in that. Does it include our trees? Can you call it to the attention of people can do something about it before we lose massive amounts of trees?

Hauling them away will probably cost more than saving them!

Lila D’Adolf