Mayor Adams’ former top aide Sheena Wright took to social media Wednesday to post a cryptic message about “testimonies” and having “stories to tell” days after resigning as first deputy mayor.
Wright, along with former Deputy Mayor of Public Safety Phil Banks, did not submit formal resignation letters to Adams before stepping down in recent days after being ensnared in federal corruption probes, Adams spokesman Fabien Levy confirmed Wednesday. That’s in contrast to several other recently resigned advisers who did give official notice.
Wright only conveyed her resignation “verbally” to Adams, Levy said. As of Wednesday, she had not publicly commented on her departure and was conspicuously absent from a Tuesday press conference where Adams appointed Maria Torres-Springer to replace her.
She instead broke her silence with an Instagram post Wednesday featuring the song “Church Doors” by Yolanda Adams.
“I heard your spirit say, ‘Girl, you’re not done,’” read the excerpted lyrics in Wright’s post. “‘You ain’t seen nothing yet / ‘Cause the best is yet to come.’”
“I got some stories to tell / some testimonies that will do them well,” the song continued.
Xavier Donaldson, Wright’s lawyer, said further interpretation of the post was a “reach,” but the ex-first deputy mayor quickly closed her profile to the public after The Daily News asked for comment.
Sources have told the Daily News that Banks and Wright were pushed out by Adams as part of a broader directive by Gov. Hochul to clean house of aides embroiled in the investigations.
Wright, sources said, at first refused to resign amid frustrations about how she and her husband, outgoing Schools Chancellor David Banks, were ousted by the indicted mayor even though they’re not facing criminal charges of their own.
Instead of a resignation letter, Phil Banks, David’s younger brother, sent a terse email around 6 a.m. Monday to Adams that read, “I resign effective immediately. Thank you,” per a copy obtained by The News. Levy described the message as a “follow up” on a previous conversation with Adams.
Adams, for his part, has claimed recent high-profile resignations are par for the course a few years into an administration — and unrelated to his federal indictment related to his dealings with Turkey and separate probes swirling City Hall.
“Not one person that has decided to do something else with their life said ‘Eric, it’s because so much is going on,’” Adams said Tuesday.
George Arzt, a veteran political consultant who was Mayor Ed Koch’s press secretary, disputed it was common for Banks and Wright, who were raided by the feds on Sept. 4, to resign without formal notice.
“Usually, you have a resignation letter or some public announcement for [City Hall reporters] consumption,” Arzt said, “since they are the top tier of the administration.”