PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — Philadelphia’s City Council session Thursday was likely the last for Republican David Oh.
Oh made it known he intends to resign on Monday so he can run for mayor in the Republican primary, joining five of his former colleagues in leaving the legislative body to seek the executive seat.
Oh, however, went out on a loss after making a last-ditch effort to get his colleagues to pass a resolution on police training he’s been tabling for two years.
The resolution called for minimal force training for Philadelphia police officers and was unpopular from the beginning.
“We need for people under stress to be trained so that when their life is in danger, they do not unnecessarily take somebody else’s life,” Oh said.
Council voted 14 to two against his resolution after several members denounced wording that said other police reform efforts had “unintended consequences.”
Oh seemed neither surprised nor disappointed about the outcome, but one councilmember, Sharon Vaughn, rebuked Oh as “privileged,” which gave his swan song an air of defensiveness.
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“I don’t have a privileged background,” Oh said. “I have a poor person’s background and I have rumbled for everything that I have but my independence and my thoughts, they’re not from being rich.”
Going forward, Oh noted catering to the public’s needs.
“This is a great city full of wonderful people. We have a great opportunity to answer their needs.
Oh’s final act in council was to introduce a charter change bill that would create an office of music in city government.