While the mayor was saying publicly that he wanted “accountability across the board” for some pols and activists who have taken to breaking into city playgrounds in defiance of his lockdown orders, City Hall was telling cops to take it easy on those who openly flouted his rules, The Post has learned.
The revelation comes as Big Apple playgrounds are now set to reopen next week and two days after a trio of lawmakers cut their way into two Brooklyn playgrounds, an open act of defiance that had no repercussions.
The behind-the-scenes guidance runs contrary to what Mayor Bill de Blasio has said publicly in calls for all New Yorkers to be held to the same standard.
“One of the bellwethers for a fair and just society is whether there is accountability across the board,” Hizzoner declared Wednesday morning when asked about the playground gate-busting. “Whether our officers in uniform or government officials are treated the same way as everyday New Yorkers.”
But one city official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said the lack of playground enforcement was just the latest “example of de Blasio talking out of both sides of his mouth.”
“If the park [enforcement] don’t do anything, it’s because City Hall is telling not to do anything and then City Hall is complaining they aren’t doing anything — it’s disingenuous,” the source said.
“No one is doing anything — because they were told not to do anything.”
Another official confirmed the lax enforcement of the playground shutdown, which was “100 percent coming from the top.”
“City not going to enforce with any real strength … they may issue summonses,” the source said. “They also have finally realized that the more they push back, the bigger of a story it becomes for them.”
On Tuesday, Assemblyman Simcha Eichenstein, state Sen. Simcha Felder and Councilman Kalman Yeger railed against the city policy and cut the chains to two playgrounds, defying the mayor’s executive order.
As of Wednesday evening, none of the lawmakers had been issued summonses, according to the NYPD.
City Hall did not respond to a request for comment.
De Blasio announced Thursday that New York City playgrounds will reopen Monday, June 22, as the city enters Phase Two.