Bee Editorial
Mohan's indecisiveness appears politically driven
Although he didn't state who was pressuring him, Supervisor Satish Mohan e-mailed Council Member Deborah Bruch Bucki informing her that he was under pressure from several sources to change his deputy supervisor.

Bucki commented on the fact that she is a Democrat and Mohan is a Republican and for at least one year there was a bipartisan duo in the supervisor/deputy supervisor team. That ended last week.

Mohan then told Dr. Barry Weinstein, his first choice for the position, that due to additional pressure from the Town Board and other unnamed sources, he couldn't appoint Weinstein.

What happened to the man who campaigned as the nonpolitician, who was going to make changes solely for the residents? In a matter of a few hours, Mohan changed his mind three times on naming a deputy.

That includes selecting Council Member Mike McGuire, who accepted. Mohan seemed to forget he had asked McGuire when it came down to choosing a deputy. Out of nowhere Mohan named Roy Wixson, and McGuire was blindsided.

We don't know what happened between the work session and meeting on Jan. 2, and it was hard to get a straight answer from Mohan.

It became a nuisance to all those involved, including us - the official newspaper of the Town of Amherst - when Mohan made his announcement for deputy supervisor but took it back. Then to change his mind again and insult a council member is unprofessional.

Days earlier, Mohan was praising Weinstein's experience and the "level of professionalism" he would bring to the town. For a man who has said how professional he wants town government to run, he certainly did not lead by example these past two weeks.

Who was putting pressure on Mohan to make these changes? We wish he had come forth with these answers - practicing the open government he talks about at length.

We will not take a stance on who was the best choice for Mohan's deputy. It is a position decided upon by the supervisor - whether the choice is a board member or not. However, the one person who is responsible for that decision was not able to do so in an honorable way this time around.

Last year, Mohan courageously broke with the status quo and appointed a Democrat. His reasons for not appointing Bucki are known, but his thought process on the rest is unclear.

Put under pressure, Mohan appeared to be unable to think for himself, scrambling around in a manner not expected of a town leader.