Top Rhode Island Democrat Slams Dem Gov Gina Raimondo’s Leadership Vacuum On Child Welfare Scandal

Days after the Providence Journal released a bombshell report exposing a major scandal by the Rhode Island Department of Children, Youth & Families (DCYF) workers which “left young people in their care hospitalized, endangered or exploited,” Democrat Governor Gina Raimondo’s administration has taken no visible action to address the inexcusable issues, possible cover-up, or why Raimondo appointed leaders of the department who were unqualified to serve. With Raimondo staying silent, members of her own party are now calling for action and calling her out in the process. Democrat State Representative Pat Serpa, who chairs the House Oversight Committee, took to Facebook to call out the “leadership vacuum” in the state with regards to the DCYF scandals that perpetuate “problems that place kids at risk” while pledging to hold administrators accountable for “not doing their jobs.” Serpa singled out the executive branch’s lack of action in particular, placing blame squarely at the door of the Raimondo administration:

Raimondo’s incompetent handling of the DCYF has been a problem for years. In 2015, she appointed staffers to lead the DCYF who did not even meet state-required qualifications for the DCYF director position. Now, with members of her own party criticizing her failed leadership in the wake of actions by state workers that endangered Rhode Island youths, will Gina Raimondo finally take any action to rectify her administration’s inexcusable failures? Rhode Islanders deserve an answer.