Third-party mayoral candidate blames Nutter policies for violence

A third-party candidate for mayor claims the Nutter administration is to blame for the recent increase in flash mob violence.

In order to stop the flash mobs, Diop Olugbala says there should be cuts to police funding and the savings put into programs to help those who need jobs in Philadelphia.

“The reality is if the uprising that we saw in London occurs in Philadelphia, it will be a direct response and result of Nutter’s repressive policies and the ashes of the city of Philadelphia will be on Michael Nutter’s hands,” Olugbala said.

Olugbala says the city needs to shift money to economic development.

“We’re saying the money spent on stop-and-frisk needs to go toward real economic development. We’re saying the money going toward the building of more prisons like that youth prison on Haverford Avenue needs to go toward schools to provide a real meaningful future for our youth,” he said. “This will end the violence in Philadelphia.”

A spokesman for the Nutter campaign says the mayor has been a leader in the effort to curb youth violence.