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‘She’d be gone’: Head of NYCHA investigative team blasts Olatoye

By Michael Gartland and Yoav Gonen

January 25, 2018 | 11:00pm

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Ritchie Torres and Shola OlatoyeRichard Harbus and Paul Martinka

The head of the City Council’s investigations committee insisted Thursday that he’d boot NYCHA chair Shola Olatoye if he were mayor, and vowed to intensely scrutinize the embattled agency.

Ritchie Torres, chair of the Oversight and Investigations Committee, said he’s still trying to get an explanation for Olatoye’s December testimony before the council, in which she falsely claimed her inspectors received proper certifications before examining apartments for lead paint.

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“If I were mayor, she’d be gone, but it’s the mayor’s decision,” said Torres (D-Bronx).

“What I will assure you is that I will breathe down the neck of whomever is in charge of the New York City Housing Authority.”

The authority contends that Olatoye didn’t lie under oath but that staffers provided her with erroneous information, which she simply repeated.

Even if the explanation is true, Torres said it’s “inexcusable.”

“What does it say about her management that she could not get to the truth of what’s happening at her own agency?” he asked. “At what point does the buck stop with the chairperson?”

Olatoye testified that Housing Authority workers who in 2016 inspected 4,200 units with kids had federal inspection certifications.

This week, the city Department of Investigation revealed that none of the inspectors was actually certified.

It’s the second time Olatoye has come under fire for making a false statement.

In 2016, she signed off on a document to the US Department of Housing and Urban Development asserting her agency conducted annual lead inspections — when she knew it had not.

Torres — along with Council Speaker Corey Johnson and Councilwoman Alicka Ampry-Samuel, head of the body’s Public Housing Committee — met with top agency officials Wednesday to get a fuller explanation as to how Olatoye got it so wrong.

“They are still trying to figure it out,” Johnson said on Thursday. “They weren’t able to pinpoint exactly how it happened, but they’re trying to piecemeal together the timeline based off a series of things.”

Johnson stopped short of calling for Olatoye’s ouster but didn’t offer a resounding endorsement either.

“I am not ready to say at this point that Shola should resign,” he said. “Shola has to ensure that she has qualified, competent, top-level management and mid-level management that does not make mistakes, that does not prep her to testify in front of the City Council with inaccurate information.”

De Blasio has steadfastly stood by Olatoye, his appointee.

“The chair has stabilized NYCHA’s finances, sped up repairs and helped drive down crime,” de Blasio spokeswoman Olivia Lapeyrolerie said. “She’s the right person to lead NYCHA.”