Cuomo again rebuts calls to step down

Andrew Cuomo, the governor of the US state of New York, again iterated on Friday that he would not step down, amid calls to do so following new allegations of sexual harassment. 

"I am not going to resign. I did not do what has been alleged," he said. The Democrat requested people to "wait for facts" from an ongoing investigation into the claims.

This is the second time Cuomo has said he will not resign. Last week, the governor offered an apology and said that he had learned "an important lesson" about his behavior around women.

A growing number of women have accused the governor of inappropriate behavior.

The sixth accusation came to light on Wednesday, when the Times Union newspaper reported that in 2020, Cuomo allegedly put his hand under the blouse of a female staffer and touched her "aggressively" in his private residence.

The seventh accuser, journalist Jessica Bakeman, said that Cuomo had often put his hands on her. In a first-person account for New York magazine, she recounted how at a 2014 party, he said, "I'm sorry. Am I making you uncomfortable? I thought we were going steady."

More calls for Cuomo to resign

US Senate majority leader Chuck Schumer, along with several other politicians, called on Cuomo to resign.

"It is clear that Governor Cuomo has lost the confidence of his governing partners and the people of New York," Schumer said along with Senator Kirsten Gillibrand. The senators, like Cuomo, are both members of the Democratic Party.

Schumer also said that the "multiple, credible" allegations meant that Cuomo had lost his ability to govern.

Congresswoman Ocasio-Cortez, along with House of Representatives Democrat Jamaal Bowman, said the latest report raised concerns about the "present safety and well-being of the administration's staff." They also highlighted concerns over the alleged fudging of data on COVID-19 nursing home deaths by the Cuomo administration.

Cuomo: 'Wait for the facts'

Meanwhile, Cuomo said that it was "reckless" of politicians to ask him to resign before the conclusion of an investigation into the allegations.

"Wait for the facts. An opinion without facts is irresponsible," he said.

He also said that the women accusing him of misbehavior could have "many motivations for making an allegation." The governor said that he would not bow down to "cancel culture," in which a person is subjected to ostracization.

"Women have a right to come forward and be heard, and I encourage that fully," he said. "But I also want to be clear: there is still a question of the truth. I did not do what has been alleged, period."

There are also calls to remove Cuomo from office. On Thursday, Carl Heastie, the New York State Assembly speaker, said he was authorizing the Assembly Judiciary Committee to begin an impeachment investigation.

New York Attorney General Letitia James is currently investigating the allegations and hiring a law firm to conduct the probe and present the findings in a report.

am/sms (AFP, Reuters)