Oakland Police Chief Gone, Mayor Next?



With a looming vote of no confidence from the Oakland City Council, Police Chief Tucker resigned last night, leaving the OPD in tatters over the shoddy investigation of journalist Chauncey Bailey's murder and the head of internal affairs role in the beating death of man a few years ago. Add the eleven officers fired for filing false information with the judge for search warrants. As we know, the person ultimately responsible is the chief. And so we wonder is Mayor Ron Dellums next? Known as the Invisible Man, Mayor Ron has been unable to put his house in order, including the hiring of a chief administrator, the last one fired for nepotism and interfering with a police drug arrest involving her relative.

Mayor Ron has been unable to get a handle on crime, especially homicide. His pitiful state of the city speech called for a meager ten percent drop in crime during the next year. We wonder why violence decreased in Iraq as a result of giving employment to the insurgents, yet this concept eludes those who run America's crime ridden cities. Why is it so difficult to hire the youth in the security of their neighborhoods, especially since the police are unable to secure the hoods?

Mayor Dellums seems unable to get a grip on his city, forcing many citizens to suggest the formation of a New Black Panther Party since the only thing that backed the police up in the 60s was the Panther patrols. And surely at this hour some entity needs to police the police.

What we need is a council of elders to advise the city on critical issues such as youth employment, the rotting educational system with a lack of black teachers, lack of healthy food markets in the hood, disparity in health care, economic self-sufficiency and true distribution of wealth.

We love brother Ron Dellums, but his inadequacies as mayor are unacceptable. He needs to resign and enjoy the rest of his life out of the political arena.
--Marvin X