The news of Mayor Zenaida Moya’s unexpected return to City Hall rippled out in waves of disbelief today: “already?” “How could she?” “She didn’t!” No, She just did! Two weeks after giving birth by C-section the mayor was back in the boss’s chair at City Hall. Reports are that Deputy Mayor Dion Leslie, who had been holding over, promptly left the council office when he got news that she was back.
And while he left, we rushed over. We wanted to find out a number of things: Will she respond to the audit department and what will she say? What will she do about the council resolution to suspend three employees from her Finance Department? What does she think of the allegations of wrongdoing being assigned to those persons and by implication to her?
Many questions and 7News waited for three hours to talk to her but we weren’t even allowed upstairs. She declined interviews and her secretary told us that any statement the mayor makes will be through her attorney. Still, we waited it out just to get an image of the new mother back at work. Around two she left the office – but only after Keith Swift departed the area – leaving only the camera-man to get the shot of her leaving.
Strange days indeed but make no mistake, the mayor, though a formidable force is under serious pressure. The majority of her council has voted in favour of a resolution that indirectly implicates her as the councillor with responsibility for finance and the council’s majority position is fully supported by the Barrow administration. Second, there are the findings of the audit which have been widely circulated, published and discussed – which would damage the reputation of any elected official. But just the fact that she returned to office, 14 days after getting a c-section and with a small child at home, is proof that the mayor feels herself up to the challenge.
Additionally, going in now has the effect of stopping whatever disciplinary action was going to be taken against her Finance Department employees Dwain Davis and Kiran Bhudrani. In fact we understand that a hearing that was to have been held between a caucus of council with the Council’s Internal Auditor today had to be called off after the scattering that was caused by the news of her return.
All proof that the Mayor is in fighting form, once again, and after all the public battering that she’s survived since October of 2008 – we certainly wouldn’t bet against her getting out of this set of snares.
And what of the criminal charges that were to be brought by the end of today? The DPP this evening confirmed that she is finalizing her written instruction to Police and that will be handed over no later than Monday morning. Arrests will follow.
