How can you tell when North Miami Beach Police UNION president Mike Pons is lying? DUH! When his lips are moving!
According to an article from NBC Miami/Channel 6, North Miami Beach Police Facing Layoffs (http://www.nbcmiami.com/news/local/nmbp–130325183.html), “he offered over $600,000 in cuts earlier this year plus a 10 percent cut in officer pay and benefits, but said the city wants them to cut another 20 percent in pay and benefits,” and that the cuts amounted to a “30 percent pay cut in less than a year.”
Only one problem. He’s wrong.
As I stated in my column, Playing Chicken (https://www.votersopinion.com/?p=1254), I have in my possession a copy of the letter from the city’s negotiating attorney, Luke C. Savage, dated September 16, 2011, to UNION LAWYER Aaron Nisenson, which clearly enumerates the offer that the UNION made to the city and the city’s counter-offer, which proposed an additional savings to the city by suggesting a “nine and one half (9.5%) across the board wage reduction for bargaining unit members.” THE UNION LAWYER DID NOT ACCEPT THIS COUNTER-OFFER!
In fact, Aaron Nisenson’s response dated September 19, 2011, a copy of which is also in my possession, was to tell the city that it has a “Manufactured Budget Crisis,” a “Manufactured Shortfall,” and that the city is playing a “Shell Game.” On top of those false accusations, UNION LAWYER Nisenson accused the city of “moving the money to pay the police officers into funds for use by the city manager and council.” He wrote, “Since there is no real budget crisis, where does the money that went to pay the Police Officers go? It goes primarily into reserves and contingency funds maintained by the City in various Departmental budgets.” UNION LAWYER Nisenson concedes that, “While some increase in reserves and contingencies may be appropriate,” he then tells the city that to do so when 17 cops have to be laid off “is irresponsible.”
We already know that the UNION HAS BEEN DEAF, DUMB AND BLIND to the fact that WE HAVE NEGATIVE RESERVES. I can’t imagine that Mike Pons is really that stupid that he hasn’t caught on to this by now since it’s been said at least a thousand times by Mayor, Council, City Manager and THE RESIDENTS TO WHOM THIS CITY BELONGS. No, Pons isn’t that stupid. He just doesn’t give a crap about this city OR its residents. None of our budget problems or the lack of any reserves whatsoever for our water department have anything to do with him because HE DOESN’T EVEN LIVE HERE!
North Miami Beach City Manager Lyndon Bonner responded to NBC Miami/Channel 6 in a letter yesterday, a copy of which I am in possession, disputing Mike Pons’ ouright lie that “he offered over $600,000 in cuts earlier this year plus a 10 percent cut in officer pay and benefits,” by stating, “The police union has yet to present to the bargaining team a salary reduction from the police union committing to any reductions in base salary,” and that furthermore, “there were absolutely no commitment offers by the police union of any kind to the bargaining team.” Mr. Bonner also stated unequivocally that, “The fact is there have been NO base salary reduction imposed on the police union.”
Obviously, there’s a part of “NO” that Pons doesn’t understand. Is it the “N” or the “O?” Just asking.
A public records request to the City of North Miami Beach for any offers from UNION LAWYER Aaron Nisenson to Luke C. Savage, Esq. yielded no results other than the letter of September 19, 2011, as referenced above, which specifically rejects any and all offers by the city.
By lying through his teeth about what his UNION did or did not offer to the city, by claiming that he offered a 10 percent reduction in salary “earlier this year,” and by accusing the city of wanting the cops to take a “30 percent pay cut in less than a year,” Mike Pons is proving to be a master at the very same “shell game” he is accusing the city of playing. He sure knows his own tricks best.
What Mike Pons obviously did not expect to encounter was resistance to his demands. He also obviously did not expect the taxpaying residents of North Miami Beach to hold him accountable for the truth.
Even more glaringly obvious to everyone but apparently Pons himself, the more he keeps repeating the same tired UNION talking points, the bigger the fool he makes himself out to be. The press may fall for his twisted tales, but we are on to him. Even more importantly, we got ourselves a City Manager and a Mayor and several really savvy Council members who won’t back down to the typical UNION tactics of bullying and double speak. His BS may have worked on previous administrations, but we won’t get fooled again!
Stephanie Kienzle
“Spreading the Wealth”
The side issue to all of Pon’s b.s. is that he is a sworn police officer who, by his oath, is charged with telling the truth and upholding the law. His lying, on record, about the facts in his union’s supposed pay cuts is a defense attorney’s dream come true for any defendant Pons should happen to arrest in doing his job as a police officer.
A defense attorney would bring up all of Pon’s previous b.s. about pay cuts that aren’t true and pick him apart on the witness stand for any statement Pons swears as truthful in his clients arrest case. This makes Pons a liability for the city and an ineffective police officer.
Its unfortuante that Pons chose to be the elected representative of the union, as he is basically a good guy that has succummed to IUPA’s corruptive methods of doing business and has blindly drunk the cool-aide handed to him by his collegues.
“While some increase in reserves and contingencies may be appropriate,” he then tells the city that to do so when 17 cops have to be laid off “is irresponsible.”
This ludicrous statement outlines the PD’s position in general: it is the only department that is really important, every other department is expendable. Who cares if miles of water lines fail and cannot be repaired, leaving thousands of residents (or other water customers) without water? NMB’s boys in blue will be out in force, and that’s all that matters. Are they serious? I’ve lived in NMB for seven years, and called the police once. I’ve used water every single day of those seven years (2,555 days, several times a day). I’d wager I’ve flushed my toilet at least 25,000 times during those seven years.
It is not the PD UNION that has been deaf, dumb and blind to the facts about negative reserves; it is the entire POLICE DEPARTMENT. Because you are correct in your observation that they do not give a damn about this city. They care only for themselves, and their lies and false allegations make that clear. I have not heard UNION president Janice Coakley telling lies and accusing management of playing “shell games.” If she did, I would have a problem with that. 🙂
The only thing that was “manufactured” was the “balanced budget” that Kelvin Baker put through two years running…balanced to keep the PD intact while plundering the utility’s reserves and thus placing us in the precarious position we now find ourselves in. Yeah, in the end, it got him sacked. But the rest of us got screwed in the process.
You are so on target! I also love what you said about Janice Coakley. Even when she’s upset or angry about something, she is always courteous and respectful. I was really hoping she’d say, “I have a problem with that” the other night, but she didn’t. I don’t know why, but I get such a kick out of her when she says that.
I for one am so glad that I was able to retire from North Miami Beach Police Department 5.5 years ago before these financial bad times hit. Citizens of North Miami Beach prepare for a huge spike in crime as you citizen are being lied to. The city says there will be the same amount of officers on the road, this is far from the truth. As someone else stated in previous blogs Chief Linda Loizzo threw overtime at problems to get rid of them, thanks for the overtime. There use to be shift officers on the streets, community policing unit, motors, crime suppression, detectives, truancy units, bicycle units and street crime unit along with other under cover officers traveling in the city. Without these additional officers the bad guys will see less police cars on the streets and the crime will rise, especially in these bad economic times.
Also please check into how Tom Carney of the Police Administration staff is keeping his bloated salary and job, and how is it he is considered to be part of staff when he isnt even a police officer demonstrated by the fact he doesny carry a firearm. I am sure there are other spots within NMB that other fat cats are also keeping there jobs.