Recently, the Orange County Register has published editorials that are misleading and tend to create a rift between public safety and the communities they serve. Their editorials and Op-ed’s support Recalled Councilmember Iglesias as a truth-teller and fiscal conservative, but she is the complete opposite.
To use a paraphrase from a long-ago movie starring Jack Nicholson, “You want the TRUTH? Well, you can’t handle the truth…”
The truth about Ms. Iglesias is that she loves to talk about how she is a watchdog of the public purse, but as the saying goes, actions speak louder than words. Here is a lady who decided in the middle of her term as a Santa Ana Unified School District School Board member to run for city council, causing the school district to spend hundreds of thousands of dollars on a special election. Then because of her bizarre logic, she could not see fit to appoint Councilman Phil Bacerra to a vacant city council seat, causing a special election. Then she illegally interfered in matters of the City Clerk keeping her recall election out of the March primary, which resulted in a lawsuit, losing and having to pay 40,000 dollars in fees. The court sanctioned the city, and the truth is Ms. Iglesias caused yet another special election costing about 700,000 dollars.
Ms. Iglesias is a liar and consistently misleading the public. She claimed the budget would run a deficit last year, and the public safety contract had no funding. The truth was last year; the city had an over 6 million dollar surplus (page 49 of the Confidential Annual Financial Report ’19 city report). Additionally, the public safety budget also came in with a surplus, even after the council majority approval of the contract. The contract was absorbed within the existing budget, which also came in at the end of the year with a surplus requiring no extra funding.
The truth is Ms. Iglesias is toxic. While on the School Board, she attacked our teachers and educators. She could not collaborate with her colleagues. Oddly though, as a fiscally conservative gave school police officers a 14% raise over two years, all while school district budgets were in woes.
On the city council, everyone witnessed her polarizing personality, and she was unable to work with her colleagues, and in fact, they supported the recall. She ignored neighborhood and community leaders and villainized public safety. For someone to purposely create discord and distrust between public safety and its community is criminal. Voters called for her recall because of her illicit behavior, which also now includes allegations of conspiracy to commit theft of campaign signs, which is also being investigated by the district attorney’s office (case # 20-08957, SAPD).
Ms. Iglesias was recalled because the voters do not want a career politician that resorts to political rhetoric, lies, or corruption. Santa Ana spoke loud and clear; we want good governance and deserve better.
G. Serrano, Santa Ana Police Officers Association
Versión en Español:
(Gerry Serrano: Santa Ana Hablo Fuerte Y Claro)
