Jackson County Board of Commissioners chairman Tom Crow and Commissioner Dwain Smith have used newspaper advertising to make allegations that someone is “hiding” the amount of money being spent on the West Jackson EMS station. Last week Commissioner Chas Hardy called for a public meeting on the topic to clear the air.
That meeting should be held as soon as possible.
Just the same, since Crow and Smith have these allegations, one wonders why they’ve not used their positions as commissioners to reveal to the public the misdeeds they purport to have uncovered. And why they’ve heretofore done nothing to stop the alleged actions. As Hardy pointed out Jan. 21, the list of suspects for such schemes is very short — the county manager, the finance director and the commissioners.
Crow is behind the lawsuit filed by four citizens challenging the way SPLOST money is being spent. In a sense, he’s supporting a lawsuit against himself for failing to make sure that SPLOST money was governed as required by law. It would have been simpler, and saved taxpayers’ money had Crow at sometime during the previous four years he served on the board, made a motion to correct the alleged shortcoming he now chooses to highlight with legal action. If he felt the government was acting improperly, why did Crow not speak up at the time and get the remedy installed? That’s what we expect elected officials to do.
But that didn’t happen in the past, and it does not appear that Crow or Smith intend to handle matters that way in the future. Instead of confronting a problem as county commissioners who can actually do something about it, they throw out accusations in newspaper ads where there is no discussion, no rebuttal, no explanations.
The allegations published by Crow and Smith should be of interest to taxpayers, but of greater interest should be the method by which they chose to make the allegations. Commissioners unwilling to voice their concerns, fears or objections at the forum to which they are elected are not fulfilling the obligations of the office. Let them make those allegations in a public meeting where they can submit the evidence they claim to have, where the people they accuse can have a rebuttal and so citizens can weigh the evidence and let the chips fall wherever they will.
Call the meeting, commissioner Crow. It’s time to man up and face the problem head-on — for a change.
