Transportation Secretary Gina Fiandaca’s departure was an open secret days in the past however the causes for her fast exit stay shrouded in thriller because of the non-responsive Healey administration.
Fiandaca was clearly compelled out after simply eight months on the job — the primary main shakeup of the first-term governor’s tenure — but Healey tried to reward the MassDot boss on the best way out the door.
The governor “wishes her well in all of her future endeavors” – a press release that normally means somebody has simply been pushed out. But the assertion says nothing about why she’s leaving. No rationalization in any way.
“She hit the ground running and has delivered on many of our key transportation priorities,” Healey mentioned in her assertion.
In actuality, Fiandaca by no means delivered on an important precedence – enhancing the T and holding the company accountable.
Healey spokeswoman Karissa Hand refused to even reply to repeated inquiries by the Herald about Fiandaca on Friday night when phrase was leaking out the choice had already been made to let her go.
This from the supposed “transparent” Healey administration is simply the most recent transfer by the governor to withhold vital data from the general public, together with emails from high brass. Healey has been an enormous disappointment with regards to transparency.
Some imagine Fiandaca’s departure was engineered by “shadow GM” Tom Glynn, the chair of the MBTA Board of Directors and the previous Massport boss.
Glynn critics say he has had a bigger than anticipated position in all transportation issues and has the governor’s ear – one thing Fiandaca apparently didn’t have. Does he need to be transportation secretary himself?
Whether it was Glynn or T GM Phillip Eng or Healey herself who pushed Fiandaca isn’t clear however the Transportation boss clearly had a rocky few months on the job.
The T continued its depressing efficiency underneath Fiandaca and it definitely didn’t assist that she gave a virtually $1 million no-bid contract to her former brother-in-law, William Bratton. Healey was not proud of that contract and it could nonetheless be underneath investigation – once more we don’t actually know.
Except for the Sumner Tunnel closure, Fiandaca has been nearly invisible on vital transportation points for the reason that story first got here out about Bratton’s contract. That didn’t bode effectively for her future.
The subsequent query is how a lot taxpayer cash will exit the door to present Fiandaca the door.
Healey officers say the Transportation chief will stay on the payroll as an “adviser” for the remainder of the 12 months nevertheless it’s unclear if she’s going to nonetheless be incomes her full $181,722 wage, and if she will likely be handed a golden parachute bundle.
We’ll see how the “fully transparent” Healey administration delivers on that one.
Source: www.bostonherald.com”