Who Knew That Abdus Miah Was Such A Comedian?

Last week, while walking past the front of the mosque-that-may- never-come-to-be at 3rd & Columbia, I spotted 2nd ward Columbia County Supervisor Abdus Miah across the street as he was headed to the Hudson Bazaar bodega.  I yelled to him, "Hey Abdus, how are you?"  He acknowledged me and said that he was fine.  While pointing to the pile of broken marble under a window on the front of mosque-in-"progress," I asked Abdus, "Hey, when do you think the mess in front of the mosque is going to be cleaned up? Hasn't it been there untouched for like 7 months?"  He responded, "I'll call the contractor."  I had a good laugh.

Then I asked Abdus when the mosque was going to be finished and "why isn't anyone working on it anymore?"

Before entering the bodega, he responded, "Do you want to give money?"  I chuckled and replied, "No, thanks. I'm not a member."

Abdus Miah in his ward, headed to his car

Who knew that Abdus had such a silly side?  Next time I'm feeling down, I'm going to find Abdus and see if he can cheer me up again with a few laughs.  Of course, I only ever see him near the corner of 3rd & Columbia, so when I do see him again I will have to do my best not to gaze upon the unfinished, empty and seemingly abandoned building that is so prominent and still such an eyesore and disgrace.  That shit drags me down!  How can one not notice it?   At this point, I'm thinking that the whole thing has been some sort of scam right from the start 5 years ago.  The Islamic Center clearly never had sufficient funds to build their mosque to begin with.  How much longer will the city allow the Islamic Center to not pay property taxes while they "work" on the building?

Abdus Miah isn't the only member of the Hudson Islamic Center that holds an elected position in Columbia County and who is perfectly fine with the marble mess in front of the "mosque" that has been untouched since early October last year, 7 months ago.  Possible Greenport resident and 2nd ward Hudson Common Council member Dewan Sarowar (pictured below) is also a member of the Islamic Center.  How do I know this?  A few months ago, I saw him park his car in front of the bodega in a clearly marked NO PARKING zone, get out of his car, walk across the street and head to the basement of 35 N. 3rd along with several other people to take part in their daily prayers.  Before Dewan was out of sight, I asked him why he felt he could park illegally in a NO PARKING zone.  His response from across the street?  "It doesn't matter.  Mind your own business."  His car remained in the NO PARKING zone for over an hour.

I wouldn't be surprised if Dewan's 2nd ward partner Mohammed Rony is also a member of the Islamic Center and is also fine with the mess of broken marble in front of the "mosque" for the past 7 months.  Maybe he thinks it doesn't matter what the "mosque" or the neighborhood looks like either.  You would think that as representatives of the ward and neighborhood, whether they are Islamic Center members or not, at least one of them would have seen that the marble mess was cleaned up by now.  Clearly, being paid $5,000 is not sufficient for either one of them to handle a task that is expected of them:  paying attention to the important details in their ward, including seeing that conspicuous ugly messes are taken care of in a timely fashion, even if it requires calling Code Enforcement.

Honestly, WTF?

Is it time for someone from the Hudson Islamic Center, possibly one or all of the aforementioned members, to be asked to come in front of the Common Council and the public to explain what has happened to their grand plans for a new mosque at the corner of 3rd & Columbia and if it will possibly continue to be an unfinished eyesore for the next 5 or 10 years?  Would that be asking too much of them?  Shouldn't the mayor make this happen?  Shouldn't someone from the Islamic Center publicly answer the question, "When do you foresee your mosque being completed and occupied?"  How about, "When did you run out of money and what, if anything, are you doing about your lack of funds?"  You know, to reassure the Common Council and the public that the Hudson Islamic Center hasn't completely given up on their plans for a new mosque at the corner of 3rd & Columbia that began 5 years ago.

Hopefully Abdus Miah can do the explaining.  The Common Council could use a few laughs.

2nd ward County Supervisor and possible 
comedian Abdus Miah

If you haven't read the original Hudseen article from October about the "mosque" marble mess, here it is: Hello, Code Enforcment?