APRIL 22, 2022 EDITORIAL
OP-ED BY DHIREN SHAH
Hello Readers,
The politics are in high effect in Orange. As I heard, the board of the public library arranged a debate for the ward candidates. One of the board members as I heard sent an email to everyone that three administration officials would be present to answer questions. I called all three members, BA Chris Hartwyk, Finance Director Adrian Mapp, and Chief Finance Officer Nile Clements to confirm it. Hartwyk and Clemens called back and stated that they are not planning to attend. The debate at the library was on Monday and none of them attended. The candidates should be responsive to the questions raised by the residents, not the employees of the administration.
After almost a year and a half, Essex County acting president Dr. Augustine A. Boakye was confirmed as permanent President on November 1, 2021. Due to the pandemic, everything became problematic. They had to carefully decide the date of Dr. Boakye’s inauguration. Now on May 5, 2022, Dr. Boakye will be inaugurated as the 9th president of the college.
“We look forward to a long and productive relationship with our new President, one that will certainly continue to put Students First,” stated Board of Trustees Chair Marion A. Bolden. “The Inaugural ceremony shows the commitment that everyone has at Essex County College to move our proud institution into our next chapter of service to the community,” she added.
Perhaps the new movement and excitement will bring change to the College for the benefit of the students. Despite the decline of student enrollment, hopefully this will bring back the glory they once had.
Per NBC News: “Leaders of the Black Lives Matter movement are dismissing allegations that they mismanaged millions of dollars after a scathing New York Magazine report revealed that they had purchased a $6 million home in Southern California with donated funds. Patrisse Cullors, co-founder and former executive director of the Black Lives Matter Global Network Foundation, and Melina Abdullah, co-founder of BLM Los Angeles and co-director of BLM Grassroots, spoke to reporters Monday during a closed roundtable discussion, dismissing recent articles about the organization’s finances as media attacks and “misinformation and disinformation,” and claiming that any lack of transparency about the multimillion dollar property was out of concern for the leaders’ safety.” “Almost immediately upon closing, the attacks on me, and BLM, which also means Melina and others, escalated,” Cullors said, adding that she stayed at the home for four nights while the FBI investigated a death threat against her. “So, we did use the campus as a haven, as a safe place. That derailed an announcement strategy. Conditions changed, and that’s it.”
According to the New York Magazine report, the BLM group secretly bought a 6,500 square-feet house in October 2020. According to the Associated Press, they received $90 million in 2020 and $21.7 million in 2021. As per the law, they are innocent until they are charged and proven guilty. If this is for their luxury, they should be punished according to the law.
Disney, a strong company, has gotten a tax benefit for all the years on the land Disney sits on. The republican majority senate has passed a bill to eliminate the special tax district. Disney makes billions, and with its power and support from lawmakers, not paying tax has gone on for too long. It is good that they eliminated the district and will collect taxes from the giant.
Have a wonderful week. I’ll talk to you next week.
