Sunday, April 17, 2011

Ever Wonder Why Lillian Burry Maintains Her Silence On Resignations?

Yesterday's editorial in the Asbury Park Press questioned why the Brookdale College Board of Trustees didn't do a better job of scrutinizing the expenses of former college President Peter Burnham and once again calls for the resignation of the Board President Howard Birdsall and Board Attorney John M. Cantalupo.

Birdsall and Cantalupo have both arrogantly ignored numerous requests from Freeholders Amy Mallet and John Curley, the Asbury Park Press and others to resign. So why haven't they felt it necessary to admit a certain degree of fault in this scandal and heed the call to step down? It could be argued rather successfully that both looked the other way when others told them of Burnham's improprieties.

It is also rather curious why the grand-dame of the Monmouth County Freeholder Board, Lillian Burry, hasn't spoken out and demanded Birdsall and Cantalupo step down. After all, Burry was criticized for not speaking out sooner on the Burnham situation when the first allegations of improprieties surfaced against him.

Why is that do you think?

It couldn't have anything to do with the fact the John M. Cantalupo is a close personal friend of Burry's and has been acting as her Campaign Treasurer over the years, could it? Let's think about it for a second, who was negotiating the terms Peter Burnham's Brookdale contracts over the years, it was Cantalupo. Given Cantalupo's status as personal friend and campaign treasurer, I find it hard to believe that Burry had no idea of over the years, what was contained in Burnham's employment contracts.

And what about Howard Birdsall and his company, Birdsall Service Group ? Both are so intertwined within Monmouth County through political donations and public contracts, that Lillian Burry must feels it's not in her best interest to speak out publicly against Birdsall

It's for these reasons and others why it is so important to impose term limits on those that serve on volunteer boards and commissions in Monmouth County as Freeholder Mallet proposed last month but had her proposal voted down by her Republican colleagues on the Freeholder Board.

As stated in the APP editorial, it's time for Birdsall and Cantalupo to accept part of the blame for the Burnham scandal and step down from the Brookdale Community College Board of Trustees.

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