You’ve got to hand it to some of Fullerton’s lefties. Their blind devotion to abstractions, knee-jerk reaction to anything threatening their cherished causes, and blindered view of a world of injustices perpetrated on the “underserved” is pretty impressive. One way or another.
Let me be your guide! (Photo by Julie Leopo/Voice of OC)
But one thing that has really struck me lately is the way in which these folk identify themselves with the biggest thing in a democratic republic: the people.
It must be part of human nature to think that what you hold dear must be what everybody should want. But in some, the misidentification takes on a delusional quality – it is what everybody wants.
The people have spoken…
I’m referring to the recent hubbub about the ridiculous “Trail to Nowhere,” in which a tiny Ahmad Zahra claque have bi-monthly wasted hours and hours and hours talking about how their desire is the will of “the people,” and how the City Council majority is not listening to “the people.”
Why repeat the numerous reasons why the proposed trail was idiotic? FFFF has already done that convincingly. Instead, let’s look at the nature of the chatter.
Children at play…
Such talk could easily be dismissed as just meaningless political rhetoric, but these people seem to actually believe they do speak for everybody, obviously, because they are so right. It’s hard to understand where such a blind self-righteousness comes from, but I suspect it comes from decades of educational indoctrination into certain ways of thinking.
But, consider the reality.
Intrepid reporter/newsmaker, S. Kennedy, top left.
A dozen or so speakers nattering on about something they stubbornly refuse to actually understand, but believing that they speak for the citizens of a mid-size city of 145,000 people is preposterous.
All clear, fire away!
The vast majority of Fullerton’s residents don’t know anything about the Trail to Nowhere and, if presented all the facts instead of weepy and outraged propaganda of the Fullerton Observer, might possibly conclude that the Council majority acted in their interest.
With ballots being mailed out in next week, it is time for my Fullerton2022 Emily Roe Voter Guide.
With two districts and six candidates, the choices Fullerton voters will make in November can enhance government accountability and fiscal responsibility.
DISTRICT 3
Shana Charles
An associate professor in the public health department at Cal State Fullerton, Shana Charles has never served on a City of Fullerton commission or committee. As an associate professor in public health, Charles has little to no qualifications to serve on City Council as far as we can tell. Why are you not running for Fullerton School District Board Shana? You seem way more qualified for that than this generous leap to run for City Council. Charles failed to win her last race for School District in 2018. She turned around and tried, unsuccessfully to get appointed to Fullerton City Council in 2019, and then again turned around and unsuccessfully tried to get appointed to Orange County Board of Education this year.
Those who seek power are not qualified to hold it.
Charles is a socialist, who has no experience and is not qualified for City Council just like the old disaster Pam Keller. She skipped the only public forum so far so voters had no idea what she stood for beyond her tell us nothing candidate website. And then the Fullerton Observer questionnaire.
When asked about housing in Fullerton, Shana’s answer was: “With median home prices at $900,000 and rentals for $3000, our city cannot house its essential workers. We must work with any and all available programs to provide relief”. Sounds like code for rent control and building low income housing in mass. Fullerton would be the next Santa Ana under Shana’s leadership.
Her thoughts in the city budget being balanced for the first time in decades: “Our current budget is penny wise, pound foolish”. So you would spend money we don’t have as a city to pay for programs like low income housing and rental assistance. Fullerton was a small step away from insolvency before this current Council made the necessary cuts to maintain reserves. But for Shana turning Fullerton into the next Westminster is a good goal.
Arnel Dino
Fred Jung’s appointee to Planning Commission, Arnel Dino is the Commission’s Vice Chair. His voting record on Planning Commission is in line with solid Planning Commissioners in Fullerton’s recent history like Bruce Whitaker, Nicholas Dunlap, and Ryan Cantor. He is visibly clunky and sometimes talks more than he should, but he could be a viable City Council selection that will mark a huge improvement from the previous Jesus Quirk-Silva. Dino served on the Infrastructure Committee. His resume is extensive so Dino has governing experience that he will need. We are not on fire over Dino, but he could be the best of poor choices. Dino’s forum performance was not off the charts great, but was not a disaster either.
Johnny Ybarra
After failing miserably to run for City Council in District 5 in 2018, the election that gave us Ahmad Zahra, Johnny Ybarra is now running in the District where he actually lives. The former carpetbagger is a real estate agent. Not sure what to make of his candidacy since he seems to only have signs around. But his answers during the only forum so far – Fullerton Collaborative – was an unapologetically misadventure. He sounded both unqualified and uninformed. The bar is not high to beat Ybarra who is finally being honest and running in his actual District.
DISTRICT 5
Tony Castro
Wow is this kid shot out of a cannon! Not sure how much Red Bull Tony Castro drinks, but leave some for the rest of us buddy! Pro rent control and pro police reform, Castro is hellbent on turning Fullerton into the next Santa Ana, crime ridden and filled with homeless. Castro participated in two forums so far: Fullerton Collaborative and Fullerton Observer. The answers he gave were unbalanced and unbelievable. He actually said that in 2019 Fullerton had a “21 million dollar surplus”! What!?! Did you Google that son? Because Wikipedia is not good governance.
Oscar Valadez
Oscar Valadez is the best choice of all six candidate running for City Council. A family man, father of two, graduated from Stanford University and has been a church going, volunteer in his community, a community he was born and raised in. He too lacks experience in governing, but he did participate in both Fullerton candidate forums and his answers were thoughtful and articulate. He said he wants to be a “bridge between the community and city staff to implement effective policies”. That sounds like government efficiency, hopefully government accountability and better customer service. His answers to the Observer questionnaire speaks to a man who is prepared to lead with humility, a welcome change for District 5.
Regarding homelessness the candidate responded: “Fullerton needs to find ways to compassionately enforce our anti-camping ordinances”. Yes.
Commenting on leadership, Valadez answered: “Public representatives must be reminded that they serve for the good of the residents. Council members must prioritize problem solving and focus on building and maintaining productive relationships based on trust. As a fresh voice, I’d focus on collaboration and remain grounded in serving, not myself, but our residents”. Amen.
Valadez could be a brighter future for Fullerton.
Ahmad Zahra
Not sure what more needs to be said about Ahmad Zahra. He’s the incumbent so Castro and Valadez have a mountain to overcome in an election cycle that will feature historically low voter turnout and engagement. When the public is uninformed or in the case of Zahra, misinformed, it is ample space for bad actors like con artists and ponzi schemers to thrive and that is exactly what Zahra has done, misled and manipulated Fullerton residents, the Fullerton unions, the Fullerton business, the Fullerton Observer, etc. During both candidate forums and the Observer questionnaire, Zahra took credit for everything short of creating the internet. The hubris is astonishing.
Four more years of Zahra will bankrupt Fullerton, both fiscally and morally.
There is a simple question: Do you support the direction of government accountability, fiscal sustainability, and money for streets and roads that Fullerton seems to be going in under Dunlap and Whitaker?
Narcissists lie. Their entire performative existence is all about self-aggrandizement and shoring up lack of real accomplishment by spinning constant yarns about their achievements and abilities. And so I present a clinical case: District 5 Councilman Ahmad Zahra.
The Fullerton Observer/Heathy Community Mafia Forum took place last week and Zahra found another occasion to keep spinning the same myriad lies that he has told so often he may actually have come to believe some of them.
Here are a few to chew on:
Lie #1: Zahra repeated his origin story that he’s lived in the District 5 for the last 21 years.
TRUTH: Zahra’s voter registration clearly shows he has only lived in the District for the last 16. The supposition being if you tell the lie often enough, even you begin to believe your own BS.
TRUTH: Zahra had the crutch of masking his Hispanic street cred in 2018 because he has his Hispanic partner who he opportunistically paraded in front of Hispanic District 5 residents. Without the benefit of his plus one to hide behind, he is now resorted to fabricating a deep understanding of complex issues. Parking issues? Ahmad created parking issues when he mysteriously voted to extend RV parking so nonoperational trailers and motorhomes highjacked streets in District 5.
Lie #2: “I share many experiences of our residents from parking issues, to rent, to housing affordability.”
TRUTH: Zahra is just a typical limousine liberal without the limousine. Your political life is tied to patronizing, top-down government. You are an bald-faced opportunist trying to scam people with your “caring” not you accomplishments of which there aren’t any.
Lie #3: “We have a shelter with good services right here in Fullerton.”
TRUTH: Zahra sold residents on the Navigation Center, which was funded and built for Fullerton homeless. That shelter has only 3 beds dedicated to homeless right now and none of them are from Fullerton. Zahra has done nothing to help Fullerton homeless or the homeless situation in Fullerton. There is a huge encampment of homeless under the 91 freeway at Euclid that has been there for weeks on in and Zahra did nothing to get it cleaned up because he cares so much about homeless.
Lie #4: “We created a safe parking program for residents who are sleeping in their cars.”
TRUTH: The program cost over $150,000 and only a handful of cars participated in the safe parking program because of the security restrictions around it. It was by all accounts an unmitigated disaster and a giant waste of taxpayer money. But a year and a half after it was mercifully ended by the remaining members of the Council, Zahra appears at this forum taking false credit for its imaginary success.
Lie #5: “Making sure our housing element has affordable housing.”
TRUTH: Does Zahra mean the housing element that is so late in development and approval that the City of Fullerton under your watch Ahmad is getting sued over it? Zahra is taking credit for aiding in Fullerton again wasting taxpayer dollars on defending or being a plaintiff in another dumb lawsuit.
Lie #6: “I’ve been working on traffic safety since the beginning.”
TRUTH: The beginning of what? The beginning of your tumultuous and ineffective Council career? The beginning of time? Since the birth of Christ? Considering more people have died crossing Orangethorpe and Lemon during his four year term, perhaps he means beginning after this forum.
Lie #7: “I installed a crossing guard.”
TRUTH: Hold on Skippy! The Fullerton School District pays for and authorizes school crossing guards. It has nothing to do with the City of Fullerton and even less to do with Zahra. But he’ll take false credit for it. The morons who believe Zahra’s lies will believe anything nonsense he says. But others, smarter, will show their contempt for his paltry efforts at the polls.
Lie #8: “We need to take pride in our parks and reclaim our parks.”
TRUTH: Is that right? Pride in Union Pacific Park in the heart of your district, Ahmad? The park that has remained closed for his entire Council tenure? The park that you tried to give away to a private event planner with no parking solutions, until the majority of Council stopped your terrible giveaway of public parkland.
Lie #9: “We need to increase staffing levels.”
TRUTH: Zahra sat idly by and supported the incompetent City Manager Ken Domer, who cut the Parks and Recreation staff to levels unseen in Fullerton’s history. Zahra supported the now former City Manager as he gutted the parks system and here you are taking credit for caring.
Lie #10: “On my two years on the water district, I was the person who advocated the most to create treatment plans.”
TRUTH: No, Zahra received $4000 a month pay for play appointment via Jennifer Fitzgerald and Jan Flory to get appointed to the district; and his also submitted completely plagiarized water articles to the Fullerton Observer and falsely put his name in the byline, which FFFF exposed. During Zahra’s brief time on the Orange County Water District, he did not advocate for a treatment plant. But he did try (and failed miserably) to grab a leadership position on the water district Board of Directors – alienating the entire Board.
Lie #11: Regarding parking issues in Fullerton, “I have been working with Community Development to not negatively impact neighborhoods.”
TRUTH: Zahra and his quitter Planning Commissioner appointee, Elizabeth Hansburg, have underparked every single development that they have approved.To add insult to injury, Zahra gave away street parking to homeless from other states to park their broken down RVs on neighborhood streets. Real champion of the people Ahmad.
Lie #12: Ahmad asserts himself as the reinvented fighter for weed enforcement. That somehow he is a pro-regulation candidate.
TRUTH: Zahra voted for a retail cannibas ordinance that a miniscule measurable buffer zone from homes and schools and has done nothing to get rid of illegal dispensaries, all or most of which are in his district (wonder why?). He keeps telling his gullible supporters that he fights the good fight when in reality he is in the pocket of the weed lobby.
Lie #13: “Driving food to people in my own car.”
TRUTH: Zahra had some community service to work off as part of his criminal plea deal. Zahra makes his court requirement a part of his hollow altruism brand.
There are so many more lies. Ahmad lies so effortlessly, he is one thing for sure: a sociopath.
And one final observation that does not require a TRUTH rebuttal. Look at Zahra’s facial expressions each and every time the Spanish language translator interrupts him to translate his words to constituents in his community since he does not speak Spanish. Distain. Utter distain. What a hypocrite! He doesn’t care of his community. He cares about himself.
The Fullerton City Council has addressed outdoor dining. Walk on Wilshire has support from Bruce Whitaker, Jesus Quirk-Silva, and Ahmad Zahra.
What about the other locations on public property? What about the parking lot next to Heroes Bar & Grill? It wasn’t that long ago, its owner Jack Franklyn made the impassionate plea to continue outdoor dining. That isn’t news. Jack will do what makes Jack money.
Heroes, Heroes everywhere…
Doubling the capacity of Heroes with a tented outdoor space when Heroes already has a well seated patio is a slap in the face to the other business owners who need the parking spaces for their respective businesses. One of them is Play Coffee.
A real small business…
Enter self-described Hero Ahmad Zahra to the rescue. Play Coffee and its ownership needs assistance from the City Council grifter and Zahra answers the call.
All would seem fair and square until it is alleged that Zahra solicited a campaign donation from the small business owners of Play Coffee.
Zahra mother’s milk
Apparently, a $3000 campaign donation is what is required for Zahra to bother to help small businesses in Fullerton.
It is one thing for Zahra to manipulate a disabled Asian resident to say his written words the first and third Tuesday nights of each month. It is another thing to exploit the poor senior citizens of Rancho La Paz to applaud his fake efforts at Council meetings. The choreographed Latino mothers he parades in front of those easily fooled is a low most would be incapable of. But extorting small business owners for an audience with the “amazing” Zahra is a con job that is on par with the Tinder Swindler.
What has happened to the Heroes outdoor dining program? Nothing. Zahra has no juice on that Council. He caucuses with himself most meetings.
Zahra now has an additional $3000 for his reelection campaign. The downtown small business owner has nothing to show for the monetary commitment, not even a crummy shirt or cheap tote bag.
And Fullerton voters have yet another addition to a long, very long list of liars, hatchet men, grifters, and frauds who called themselves members of the City Council.
The Fullerton Collaborative hosted a candidate forum, which featured some good questions and some not so good. It featured 5 out of 6 City Council candidates running in Districts 3 and 5 this year. Shana Charles received a hall pass and did not stay for the forum.
Ahmad Zahra was his usual full of himself self. The notorious man who never wasted a selfie opportunity was untruthful, effortlessly deceived the audience, remaining true to his duplicitous self.
SERIAL LIAR
Here’s a list of the many, oh, so many lies.
LIE #1: “The district I’ve called home for the last 21 years.”
TRUTH: Zahra’s voter registration record doesn’t agree.
LIE #2: “As a medical doctor.”
TRUTH: Zahra is not a licensed medical doctor or a medical professional of any kind.
LIE #3: “The budget needs to be reflective of the needs of our community.”
TRUTH: Zahra wasted a million dollars of the people’s money frivolously suing a local blog and its authors, and were it not for the new Council, that bill would still be accumulating. A million dollars would have paid for a fire engine and more than a handful of Parks and Recs, Police, or Firefighter, or Maintenance employees.
LIE #4: “We have a shortage of staff and we need to invest in those areas.”
TRUTH: Zahra had an opportunity to pass a budget with a 1% cut and $1 million dollars to the City Manager to fill staffing concerns. He voted no, not once, but on three different City Council meetings.
LIE #5: “I would love to see more drug programs and engaging our school district on drug prevention programs.”
TRUTH: Zahra advocated for publicly and voted for on four separate occasions to have weed sold in Fullerton with only a 100 foot buffer zones to schools or homes or churches or parks.
LIE #6: “Supportive housing is crucial, but we need to make sure we are also outreaching and creating transparency.”
TRUTH: 1600 Commonwealth is an affordable housing development and so little transparency and outreach was done that the neighbors protested en masse and killed the deal with Pathways of Hope because of lack of outreach and transparency.
LIE #7: “We need to make sure our parks are maintained and cleaned.”
TRUTH: Zahra voted to give away Union Pacific Park in the heart of his district to a for-profit event planner for weddings.
LIE #8: “I have been one of the most engaged Council members. Everybody knows I’m out there.”
TRUTH: Woodcrest neighborhood mothers and residents have come to one Council meeting after another in the past 2 years complaining about Zahra’s lack of accessibility and lack of engagement with them. But then again, they are not kissing his ass and stroking his giant ego. He works with the Center for Healthy Neighborhoods. Why? Because their director donates to his campaign and their employee Egleth Nuncci is his permanent tag-a-long. No other non-profit or community group gets any engagement from Zahra.
LIE #9: “We also need to expand our ability to do corporate partnerships.”
TRUTH: Zahra strong armed Republic Services, the City’s trash hauler to give his pet project city in a foreign country a trash truck and then promptly took a selfie and credit for saving democracy. That’s not a corporate partner. That is a quid pro quo.
LIE #10: “I have worked with this Council, despite sometimes the hard times and differences we’ve had.”
TRUTH: Zahra only works for and with Zahra. He has no contact with his Council colleagues. So how are you working with this Council, Ahmad?
LIE #11: “Be faithful with my votes.”
TRUTH: Zahra made an impassioned speech about how important voting was in his country of Syria and that the at large Council seat vacated by Jesus Quirk-Silva should be determined in a special election to betray the people and his faith in democracy the very next meeting and appoint the elderly disaster Jan Flory, who in turn voted to appoint him to the Orange County Water District and its healthy stipend, one he took without objection and then donated to his campaign.
LIE #12: “We see so many Councilmembers come and then they make backroom deals.”
TRUTH: See TRUTH #11.
The truth is Ahmad Zahra is nothing more than a serial liar. Things come apart so easily when they are held together by lies. It’s always the ones with dirty hands doing all the finger pointing isn’t it?
For over a year Fullerton “Fire” Heroes have been pressing for Fullerton’s admission into the ranks of the OC Fire Authority, an agency that will give them more of what they crave: our money. We, as always pick-up the check.
Tuesday night, the Orange County Fire Authority proposal and the rebuttal were presented to Fullerton’s City Council, and the fire Heroes brought out the entire circus: wives, children, retired firefighters, Anaheim firefighters, Ahmad Zahra’s strange sycophant Bernard, and Ahmad permanent Plus One, Egleth Nuncci.
We have a deal. He tells me what to say and I say it…
Of the OCFA, the Voice of OC recently wrote: “(They are) wrestling with some big issues right now, including a drop in staffing, stalled contract negotiations, along with an ever expanding wildfire season and a revolving door of fire chiefs over the past decade.”
Judging by the public comments from the fire Heroes and their supporters, this article aptly describes Fullerton.
Fullerton’s budget currently allocates an astounding $21.5 million dollars for fire Hero salaries. That is $21.5 million dollars more than as ever been allocated in general fund money for streets, roads, sidewalks or streetlights. It’s no wonder the city if falling apart. If the OCFA comes in it’s going to cost even more.
Of course, this enormous expense is humped by Fullerton taxpayers, who get the best EMT service $21.5 million dollars can buy because over 80% of all Fullerton “fire” calls are not fire calls. They are medical calls!
We want your business. And by business I mean screw you.
In the meeting, OCFA Chief Brian Fennessy says Fullerton fire is a department in crisis because they are losing so many fire Heroes to other departments.
According to Voice of OC reporting, in their last fire academy, OCFA wanted to recruit 50 fire heroes to help boost their staffing levels.
Why? Because staffing levels have “dropped to the point that firefighters are being regularly forced to pick up extra shifts.”
Sounds familiar Fullerton? Same complaints our Fullerton fire Heroes cry about their very own department.
“They (OCFA) got 19 firefighters, two of which quit within the first month to return to their old fire departments in the Inland Empire that were offering better pay and benefits.
“With that lack of new personnel, it’s putting stress on the existing staff, with many reporting they’re being forced to work dozens of hours of extra shifts against their will.”
A Fullerton fire Hero’s wife said the exact same thing at the Council meeting about the department that issues overtime to her “overworked” husband with such regularity, it is widely known in fire circles that overtime for fire heroes is a part of the salary.
There are a few certainties in life. Death. Taxes. And the pressure terrorism campaign from the Fullerton fire heroes will most certainly begin in earnest.
Zahra is bought and paid for by the Fullerton fire union, so he can’t say yes fast enough to the OCFA move. His fundraiser was dutifully attended by Fullerton Fire Union President Dan Lancaster, who snagged over $60,000 in overtime pay alone in 2020.
Lancaster, you are now Hero and Deserve. Go get that second house at the river. And a giant truck to haul that big boat.
The fire union will definitely contribute on behalf of Ahmad’s campaign in the form of independent expenditures, of which for some reason they are always absolved.
The hypocrisy in criticizing a candidate taking donations from Tony Bushala or a John Saunders as being in the pocket of developers, but taking money from the fire heroes is beyond reproach.
Also, Fullerton’s fire union and its fearless leader Lancaster need to learn to count. Supporting Zahra gets you to 1 vote. Unless you can count to 3 Dan, you have nothing.
So support Zahra at your own peril or get better union representation that will get you better results.
Silva, Jung, Dunlap, and Whitaker can use the facts presented to see that the problems Fullerton’s department faces are the problems all departments countywide are facing. Even the glorious OCFA, when considering their sexual discrimination lawsuits, and recruiting issues, isn’t the shining city on the hill it claims to be.
The four will be the target of text, phone, and mail campaigns urging citizens to support their fire Heroes because the near 90% of their department that makes in excess of $100,000 (not counting overtime) they are not adequately compensated.
The answer: Fullerton’s budget trying to placate its fire Heroes, who after Tuesday’s Council whine session look less like Heroes and more like entitled welfare recipients.
During a recent City Council meeting on August 2, the video footage shows Mayor Jung calling the Closed Session portion of the meeting to order with Jung, Dunlap, Silva, and Zahra present.
The video footage in its entirety is shown here:
At the 2 minute mark on the video, the City Council returns and Jung is seen calling the regular meeting to order with Jung, Dunlap, Silva, and Whitaker present.
What happened to Ahmad?
The City Clerk remarks, “Councilmember Zahra is around here somewhere”.
Where is somewhere? Was he using the restroom to drop a deuce?
Over 20 minutes later (see 23:00 on the video), Zahra triumphantly returns and announces, “Just apologies for coming a little late”.
A little late? Where’d you go?
It doesn’t take 20 minutes to take the Browns to the Super Bowl.
August 2 just so happened to be National Night Out. National Night Out is described as an evening to “enhance the relationship between neighbors and law enforcement while bringing back a true sense of community. Furthermore, it provides a great opportunity to bring police and neighbors together under positive circumstances”. What a crock! One easy way to bring back a true sense of community: Stop murdering Kelly Thomas and Hector Hernandez FPD!
Stop animal cruelty!
The answer always lies in Zahra’s social media because the criminal cannot help himself from posting badly aimed selfies with random photo victims of his narcissism. “Our council meeting was short so I got a chance to join the annual National Night Out event hosted by our Fullerton Police Department,” his post reads.
Twenty minutes is about the time it takes for a not so in shape Councilman to gingerly walk across Highland Avenue and down Amerige Avenue to the plaza downtown, take a handful of poor photos of poor victims of his unlimited vanity, and walk back to City Hall.
For Ahmad Campaigning for the next job > Doing the job he was elected to do.
Voters will remember his betrayal of his oath of office to faithfully discharge the duties of his office.
Time to take out the trash Fullerton.
A-B-Z. Anyone but Zahra!
Fullerton voters have many choices in life.
But in 2022, they are given the opportunity to choose between a man who was charged by the OCDA for battering a woman and so busy trying to keep his job, he fails to do it, a deadbeat political hanger-on and a long time Fullerton Resident, Oscar Valadez, a family man, a businessman, a father of two young children.
Fullerton voters will neve be given a clearer choice.
Allow me to introduce Tony Castro. Or known to his buddies as Antonio Castro.
Not to be confused with the former Deputy City Manager under hapless Ken Domer, Antonia Castro-Graham.
Tony just pulled papers for District 5, the same District as our criminal Zahra.
The 38-year-old couch surfer with a couple of conflicting known addresses of record describes himself as an “internet and online marketing” expert.
You’re a fugazi!
Sounds about as fishy as Zahra explaining his prowess as a “filmmaker”.
2300 E. Commonwealth Avenue, apartment #4 in Fullerton is the registered “business” address of one Maximum Creativity, of which Antonio Saucedo Castro is the listed contact. The address also shows Unlimited Possibilities as being “headquartered” there, also owned by one Antonio Saucedo Castro.
If this all sounds curiously comedic, you would not be in the minority. Castro was also a staffer for one Peter Mathews, a junior college professor who ran for Congress in the June primary.
Who is Peter Mathews? Again, you would not be in the minority because Mathews came in a very, very distant fourth place, mustering only 3% of the vote.
Way to pick a winner Tony!
Court documents also show that Tony was sued for “unlawful detainer” in 2009, which is legal mumbo jumbo for eviction and has a judgement in the amount of $3,022.
Stop the Steal!
The obvious question is what business is someone who can’t rent an apartment per the negative credit history doing running for Fullerton City Council. Perhaps Zahra made the poor patsy do it. Because Tony’s “business” Maximum Creativity has a few reviews on Yelp. And safe to say they are not Michelin quality:
“Our company hired “tony” to do basic merchant services and design on our website. After paying 1000 dollars to start, over a month later…tony is missing in action. He is a fraud. We have received nothing for our money except empty promises and perpetual headaches. Do not, I repeat do not do business with this “company” especially tony. He lied, lied to cover his lies and long in the short did nothing but waste our time, and steal our hard earned money.” says one review.
scam artist alert!
Another reads, “This guy is a complete scam artist took 1000 dollar deposit to complete our website and never did any work wont answer a phone call or return a call or email from any body at our business. We have tried contacting him for over 2 weeks as we were on a dead line to complete website due to a huge marketing campaign, that he was aware of and promised to meet. Do not use him for any of your business needs! He will promise you the world and all he will do is steel from you ! Businesses beware of Tony and his company he will take your money and disappear ! Had to get our lawyers involved just to show him he cant do business like this 1k dollars isn’t a lot but the principal of just stealing from people needs to be addressed ! one star because that’s the lowest you can give a crook on YELP!”
JUST WHEN YOU THINK YOU’VE HIT ROCK BOTTOM IN AWFUL CANDIDATES FULLERTON, SOMEBODY SAYS HOLD MY BEER AND HANDS YOU A SHOVEL.
The postcard at the restaurants reads “SAVE THE WALK ON WILSHIRE AND OUTDOOR DINING!”
give it away, give it away, give it away now
“Fullerton City Council voted to remove the Walk on Wilshire in September”.
FALSE!
A few months ago, the City Council haphazardly voted: Whitaker, Jesus, and Ahmad, to explore keeping it permanent, whatever that means nowadays in this city.
What it fails to acknowledge is that their precious Walk on Wilshire is not a community benefit.
It is far from that.
It is a government subsidized revenue mechanism for a handful of “downtown” restaurants/bars.
Closing Wilshire Avenue to vehicle traffic in the name of public health is dumb government when latest COVID numbers are trending down to such a degree, even hypersensitive Los Angeles has opted not to have an indoor mask mandate.
Blocking Wilshire Avenue – Fullerton’s bike boulevard – in a feeble attempt to turn a very small section of downtown Fullerton into dining al fresco is nonsense since the view for diners is barriers and an asphalt street.
What’s that saying about lipstick on a pig?
“Downtown” Fullerton is not London or Rome!
Walk on Wilshire is Whitaker, Jesus, and Ahmad’s way of sponsoring a select group of “downtown” businesses like Mulberry Street Ristorante, Fullerton Brew Co (formerly Stadium Tavern), Green Bliss and Rialto Cafes, and Les Amis Restaurant.
Les Amis Restaurant recently hosted and sponsored the bitchin’ Zahra campaign kick off fundraiser so it is plainly obvious why that criminal would support Walk on Wilshire.
Jesus Quirk-Silva is just a moron who can’t find his way out of his pants wearing wife’s political shadow.
He’s a lame duck anyway with redistricting sidelining him for a few years.
But Bruce?!!?
He has consistently challenged zone changes, government’s heavy handedness, and city thumb on the scale for years.
So why would an anti-government interventionist support this?
Ronald Reagan warned that the top 9 most terrifying words in the English Language are: I’m from the government, and I’m here to help.
Maybe Bruce is not at the wheel anymore.
Fullerton can’t figure out street and road repair with most residents living in street conditions resembling a third world country.
Yet somehow, its City Council and its small group of vocal influencers want to have their cake and eat it too by saving its failed Museum, its Fox Theatre, its outdated library, its overgrown parks system, and “community” events like Founders Day.
Keep spending taxpayer money on closing perfectly good streets like Wilshire Avenue so businesses that financially support Zahra get a financial kickback disguised as public safety benefits.
We need leadership Bruce!
I miss the old Bruce, straight from the ‘Go Bruce!
Amateurs and concerned residents who attend Fullerton City Council meetings to address grievances and gripes are off limits from FFFF evaluation.
But professionals like labor unions and social “justice” non-profits are fair game.
FFFF regularly shines our light on them.
Which brings us to enemy of the people, Ahmad Zahra, who recently held a fundraiser to kick off his re-election campaign.
Hardly newsworthy.
His guest list, however, was a who’s who of Fullerton’s past failures.
Remember Paul Dudley, the Fullerton Development Department head who brought us the infamous Florentine Bump Out, now Mario Bump Out!
What a Cast!
He was there! As was Jan Flory, his boat drinks friend who vacations with the former city staffer Dudley. She was hangin’ with Ahmad.
The Ahmad endorsed city council candidate Shana Charles walked the Zahra red carpet. She’s a socialist in Dem clothing.
A curious guest of honor was frequent public comment maker and victim to Fullerton’s mean streets and even meaner sidewalks: Bernard.
Berny reads an Ahmad prepared speech at meetings because Zahra is too chicken to debate and risk offending the sensibilities of politically correct liberals.
Berny moans on about how important staff is (a constant suck up of his boss Zahra).
Or you can find him criticizing Bruce, Jung, or Dunlap.
His favorite obsession is Bushala, who just happens to be Ahmad’s infatuation.
Big, bad Bushala who uses his “council majority” a frequently peddled phrase by both Berny and his boss, to pad his own pockets.
No examples are ever provided. Just more pro-Ahmad propaganda.
That is what Fullerton voters can expect from the con artist Zahra.
He is not beyond using the disabled, Latina moms, seniors in mobile home parks, former city councilwomen, all of whom he manipulates with ease for his own personal gains.
Another guest on the Zahra guest list was Fullerton hero firefighter Dan Lancaster, who is the union rep.
Where’s The Fire?
Should a current public employee show his face at a campaign fundraiser?
I wonder how much influence he and his heroes have on the decisions Ahmad makes.
According to the Orange County Grand Jury here, Fullerton Firefighters are using million dollar fire trucks to rumble down torn up streets to respond to medical calls instead of nimble paramedic vans.
Medical calls are 80 percent of all fire emergency calls.
The fire hero union and its leader Lancaster are milking Fullerton taxpayers dry in unlimited overtime riding around to car accidents and getting cats out of trees.
There is no accountability and no supervision of their overtime expenses because Ahmad is too busy hosting them at fundraisers.
Zahra, Jung, and Silva were all supported by the fire union with thousands of independent expenditure dollars.
Election season can give Fullerton a new choice away from the status quo support these heroes receive from nearly every politician but Dunlap and Whitaker.
Let’s feel the burn and find more courageous candidates.
The report points out that “sending a 36,000 to 60,000-pound fire engine or aerial ladder truck down residential streets for strictly medical calls is not only dangerous and costly, but it also results in unnecessary wear and tear on our streets.”
Fullerton already has terrible roads.
“To improve the overall response performance of the OCFA delivery system the number of units sent to most emergency medical incidents must be reduced.”
The City Council is expected to consider joining OCFA. If the fire heroes union already owns Zahra, is being in OCFA a forgone conclusion?
“City of Placentia reported that out of 43 fire departments surveyed in Los Angeles, Orange, and Riverside Counties, 27 departments (67 percent) utilize a three-person engine crew. This was the most common standard among the three counties,” concludes the OC Grand Jury.
Fullerton uses a four-person engine crew. That is why the city is forced to pay some of the highest percentages of overtime to its firefighters.
Fullerton taxpayers will keep paying until we have better leaders
