Election season is evidently heating up in West New York as Frank Ferreiro, an enemy turned ally of Mayor Felix Roque, and town resident Ralph Martell went into attack mode against Commissioner Count Wiley – Roque’s main opponent for the May 12 municipal election – at yesterday’s board of commissioners meeting.Â
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“Do you live in West New York, do you even live here,” Ferreiro asked Wiley during the public portion of the meeting, also asking where the commissioners children went to school or if Wiley’s wife was a committeewoman in North Bergen.
Wiley seemed unfazed by the questioning.
“The guy’s a West New Yorker. I’m a die hard West New Yorker. I love this town,” Wiley said with a smile on his face, later stating that his wife Beatrice “bends over backwards” for West New York.
The exchange between the two quickly began to get hostile, which nearly led Revenue and Finance Commissioner FiorD’Aliza Frias to call for a recess in the meeting.
The tension in the room continued to rise when Martell, who was once a close ally of ex-Mayor Sal Vega, began to question Wiley about the legitimacy of the allegations made last week that board of education employee Rick Solares was participating in “illegal politicking” for the Roque campaign.