Ray Lewis has resigned as deputy Mayor to Boris Johnson over allegations of impropriety that date back 10 to 12 years. Some of the allegations are listed here.
We do not know what truth lies behind these allegations but what we do know is that they are coming thick and fast.
The lesson clearly is that if you stick your head above the parapet and get into politics your enemies will try to get you.
I do not know why we are in this position. Clearly any appointee needs to be vetted. Was this done? Is this just a case of bad blood?
Still, a mans reputation lies in tatters because he tried to do something, and all this without a trial.
The BBC has this on the resignation, Iain Dale has this on the affair.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
2 comments:
I would guess that dear old Boris still thinks that if one takes a chap's word then one should be able to assume it is the gospel truth.
Alas those days went once we allowed the middle classes into politics.
Quite why we invest so much trust in people whose only interest is themselves first, their family second and anything leftover for themselves beats me.
At least the aristos mostly subscribe to noblesse oblige and the lower orders just wanted to make things better for everyone.
I'd personally go back to a very limited franchise - chaps from Oxbridge only and not even them if they've dabbled in a popular music ensemble.
Before you leap up and suggest this might be racist I would point out that there were at least a dozen or so coloured chaps there in the early 80s. I do quite forget though which countries their parents were defrauding of the national treasury.
it's tough to be a reformer when it looks like you might have stolen a parishoner's money...especially if a third party pays it back.
if the beeb is correct this is bad for lewis--and it probably has very little to do with parapets.
you just can't have something like that unacknowledged in your background and run on a reform ticket.
had be broken the story it might have been different...and even now he might be able to express contrition and come back in some time distant--but he didn't, so he has big problems...and so does his boss.
Post a Comment