News from Shawyn Patterson Howard, Democrat for Mount Vernon Mayor.

Dear Friends,

#ItsTime for New Leadership in Mount Vernon
Today, Mount Vernon is battling yet another crisis of leadership. Corporation Counsel Lawrence Porcari was arrested this morning and is facing state indictments on misuse of $350,000 in city funds. Our city leaders consist of: our Mayor under felony indictment; our top lawyer indicted under misuse of city funds; Parking and Police Commissioners who were found guilty of crimes involving fraud and reckless behavior; and our Buildings Commissioner charged with driving while under the influence and with a suspended license. This is unacceptable.
Mount Vernon cannot afford any more indicted elected officials. We cannot afford any elected officials who misuse and attempt to defraud the people
As the CEO and President of the Yonkers YMCA, I walked into a building that was facing investigations from inspector generals offices at the federal, state, county and local levels.  I turned around the organization to deliver 10 consecutive years of clean audits, doubling revenues and tripling staffing while increasing the annual operating budget.
At my town hall meeting on May 15 where I discussed Restoring Integrity and Trust in Mount Vernon city government, I said:

"Public servants must be held to the highest level of accountability, acting honestly and ethically when carrying out their duties, and should not use their position for personal financial gain."

As mayor, I will call on the Office of the District Attorney, Public Integrity Bureau to investigate and prosecute all types of crimes involving public servants.
Further, I will create a whistleblower program and process offering protections to city employees and residents alike who may be the target of harassment from public servants.
Lastly, often ethics and integrity violations are the result of lack of training and insufficient policies and procedures.  Introduction of an ethics and integrity compliance program would mitigate further minor infractions.
I am a leader who is committed to getting it done and leading through integrity, honesty and transparency. You have a choice on June 25th to rid Mount Vernon of morally corrupt and self-serving politicians. I believe throughout my life I have delivered results and I will continue to that as Mayor of Mount Vernon.

Read the rest of the article here.

Best,

Shawyn Patterson-Howard
#believeagain

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