Time to step down

Michael Schwarz, the president of the Edison Policemen's Benevolent Association (PBA) Local 75, has made it very clear he is not interested in the welfare of the community he once pledged to serve.

Schwarz announced recently that the PBA has pulled out of the newly formed community relations advisory committee recently instituted by Mayor Jun Choi.

The PBA's retreat is the latest slap in the face to the mayor and Police Chief George Mieczkowski.

The committee was formed after several racially tinged events involving South Asian residents. Its purpose is a good one - to soothe tensions and encourage dialogue between Edison's many ethnic groups.

But Schwarz pompously announced recently that after giving the committee "a fair shot" the PBA had decided the committee was going in the wrong direction.

He couldn't have given it much of a shot, considering the fact the committee is only a few months old.

Satish Poondi, a committee member and New Jersey Federation of Indian Associations representative, summed the defection up succinctly. It was inappropriate for the PBA to "run away," he said.

He's right. Schwarz and the PBA have placed roadblock after roadblock in Choi's way. This was just the latest.

Consider the laughable demonstration on a torrid August day when some PBA members and their most vocal supporters, including a few past and present councilmen, ranted in front of town hall, demanding the mayor's resignation.

Why? Because Choi and Mieczkowski were determined to find out who had tipped off federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials that the man at the focal point of an Aug. 2 rally organized by an Indian activist would be attending the rally.

Choi has also made it clear that he and the police chief are committed to reforming the police department, a department besmirched by the actions of a few idiot officers at the expense of many.

And Schwarz hasn't stopped there. He announced that the PBA will be doing its own "outreach" in the community by setting up stations in different areas of town.

Let's hope the chief and the mayor have been informed about his plans, which can only serve to further divide and confuse residents.

It's time for Mr. Schwarz to resign as president of the PBA. It's time for Mr. Schwarz to do the citizens of Edison a favor.