Letters to the Editor: Downey embarrasses itself with Catherine Alvarez as mayor pro tem

Dear Editor:

I would like to express my profound disappointment with our mayor Blanca Pacheco for voting to appoint Catherine Alvarez mayor pro tem.

Alvarez is a convicted thief who also pleaded guilty to welfare fraud. And we expect her to oversee our budget and police department?

I sure miss the days when our local elected officials served with integrity, free of scandal, and were people we could look up to. Meredith Perkins, David Gafin, Diane Boggs and Mario Guerra come to mind.

What a joke our beloved city has become. Blanca should be ashamed of herself.

Melissa Zapata
Downey

Dear Editor:

It looks like Blanca Pacheco fooled us all.

We thought we elected a smart, courageous leader and got the cowardly lion instead.

Anthony Picazo
Downey

Dear Editor:

We must congratulate council members Blanca Pacheco and Mario Trujillo for making Downey the laughing stock of the country. It is the first time that a convicted felon has been elected mayor pro tem of a city in the western world.

For those of us who care about Downey, the next step should be a recall effort against Pacheco and Trujillo and to work for their opponents in any new election in which they try to participate.

It is obvious we have reached a new low in politics in Downey. It is not surprising given the moral character of Pacheco and Trujillo. Sean Ashton does not have the courage to show his true colors and by abstaining he de facto voted for Alvarez for mayor pro tem.

Can we go any lower? Probably not, but that is small consolation in a sad episode of Downey’s history.

Jorge Montero
Downey