It is a sad day in Edison with the ordinance that has been adopted by the handpicked council persons of Mayor Jun Choi curbing the time Edison residents are given to speak at council meetings. Edison is the fifth largest town in the state of New Jersey and has a very diverse population. Because of the nature of our town, it is important that residents express their concerns, because this affects the quality of life.
It is evident that this ordinance is the [brainchild] of Mayor Jun Choi. It is a known fact that he meets with a group of his handpicked council persons every week to discuss what should be put on the council agenda. This man wants complete control of every facet of government. In his mind, “I am the law,” but that is really a dictatorship.
Our forefathers made sure in our Constitution that people would have the freedom of speech, and many Americans have paid with their lives in several wars to make sure we have that freedom today. Not too long ago, a group whose thinking is just like Mayor Choi and his handpicked rubberstamp council, tried to stop Martin Luther King Jr. They killed him trying to stop him. Because of Dr. King’s efforts, we elected our first black president, Barack Obama. Back in 1947, the nation of India fought to get their own country and freedom from the British, just like we Americans did. They, too, before becoming a country, had no freedom of speech.
We have freedom of speech, and because of this, we have had the right to address the council in the past. Many of the projects that would have been detrimental to our town have been stopped. For example, the mayor (behind the scenes) had worked with a developer to build about 1,000 units of housing and other structures at the site of the Edison train station at our expense. He wanted to have Edison bond the project to the tune of $20 million. The public outcry so far has stopped it from happening. Don’t be surprised if it ends up being built anyway at taxpayers’ expense. Our Mayor Jun Choi has been getting his way for the last three years — like a 53 percent salary increase, a 40 percent tax increase, plush new jobs for his handpicked group with free cars and E-ZPass. Edison needs a change, and that is to get rid of Boss Jun Choi.
Patrick Donovan Sr.
Edison