Makes Me Wanna Holler, Throw Up Both My Hands



At the last board meeting, a representative from the Lumberton League of Voters addressed the board of aldermen; asking them to put aside their differences and work together for the greater good of the City of Lumberton. There wasn't a particular set of concerns presented to the board, but the board (Bobby Gibson) did make an effort to put an end to the rumors about the misappropriation of funds at city hall by having a representative of Nicholson and Company address the citizens of Lumberton. The presentation didn't do much to appease the audience but it did show that the board is trying to steer the public's attention away from what's taking place in the water department.
Going to the board with allegations and no proof is not going to resolve the issues at city hall. I was told that Alderman Rogers asked for the termination of an officer because his certification was in question. It seems that Officer Timothy Ryan Byrd has appealed to the certification department to have his certification re-instated. For some reason, the board of alderman didn't want to terminate Byrd while he's appealing to have his certification reinstated. When this board was under the leadership of Bobby Gibson, the aldermen didn't have a problem terminating certified officers so why was it so difficult for them to suspend Byrd, without pay, until his certification issues are cleared? It's obvious that this board is not going to do anything about this officer. It's up to the citizens to voice their concerns, put their complaints in writing and submit those letters to the certification board in Jackson, MS before they hold a hearing regarding Byrd's certification in November. I know there are people that have issues with how Hobson and his crew were hired, but it is what it is. When Bobby Gibson waited for Mayor Holder to leave for surgery, he made sure that he got rid of certified officers and put his team of officers in place. His actions may not be ethical but they're not illegal. In order to fight the injustices taking place at city hall, we're going to need a paper trail and that trail must be started in Jackson because it's obvious that this board has no intention of doing the right thing.
Last night, I attended a voter league meeting and I must say that I was not impressed with the direction this group is taking. We've said that this is not a black or white issue (or was that me) and that we wanted accountability at city hall, but for some reason, it seems that the group is turning everything over to the NAACP and I don't think that's the right direction to take. In my opinion, the NAACP is about as effective as placing a girdle on an elephant. I've been down this road before with the NAACP and they are nothing more than talk and after they use the events in Lumberton to boost their membership roster, they're not going to do anything other than hold a march and they will feel that the mission is accomplished. I found it strange that the representative was saying that "we" know about this and "we" know about that, but "they" need to be invited in to do something. What? And in order to get invited to the table, they need x number of people to become members and they will give our group access to their resources. I'm not going against those that want to become involved with the NAACP, but I don't think I'll be taking this journey with them if this is the direction they're taking because the money being spent on NAACP membership could be used by the Lumberton Voter League to hire their own attorney and file a class action civil lawsuit against the City of Lumberton. Instead, they're planning on giving almost $1,800 to this organization in hopes that they find some magic solution and I fear that nothing will be done. If the NAACP knows about the things going on in Lumberton, why won't they come in and offer assistance. What happened to the term "injustice anywhere is a threat to justice anywhere."
The fact that the board wanted to put an end to the rumors surrounding the deficit in WSOM shows that they're concerned about this matter getting more attention. In order for the Lumberton Voter League to be an effective group, they're going to need to demand accountability from the board of aldermen. That means giving us real answers to the missing money, the billing errors, and the fact that certain individuals are not paying water bills, late fees and/or reconnect fees. There are some that have the proof needed to shine the light of accountability on city hall's water department and it's time for them to come forward and present their information so that we, as a group, can demand accountability. There were a large number of people from our community present at the last board meeting and they need to continue to show up for the board meetings. My problem with the NAACP is that they're ineffective and we don't need another march, we need accountability. We all know that racism exists and the saddest part about the things taking place in our city is that they were approved by Bobby Gibson and Timothy Johnson; let's not spend a great deal of time chewing that cud. The bigger question is, what do we do about the things that we can and must do for ourselves? There's a curfew ordinance and when it was being passed the parents of this city did nothing to voice their opposition to the ordinance. But that does not give the police the authority to harass everyone that's walking after dark. If you're constantly being stopped by the police then you need to document the time, date and the name of the officer so that your complaint can be sent to Jackson, otherwise, you're just chasing your tails. These are not issues easily talked about in polite company, let alone addressed and solved. But address them we must. If the only tool you have is a hammer, then every problem starts to look like a nail. We need to hold them accountable for the missing money and use our resources to hire an attorney to file our civil suit against the City of Lumberton.

Comments

  1. I would like to know what's being done about Bobby Gibson's family going around acting like they're the mafia. The other day, Clevland Gray Jr. started so mess with Todd and when Todd showed that he was a "real" man, Cleveland went and got his Uncle Dewayne and Dewayne's daddy in law and went after Todd. They cornered Todd at his momma's house and jumped on him and now Todd is in jail for assault or something like that. How can a person be attacked in the yard of his mother's house by three grown, ashey azzed men and he's charged with assault instead of self defense?

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  2. Bobby Gibson and his family has gotten out of control. They know they have the police in their pocket. First Bobby has the chief to get rid of a ticket for his daughter and now his brother and nephew are running around like rabid dogs. I heard about how they did Todd and his momma need to make sure she press charges against Jelly nem for coming onto her property. I know they did it because they also ganged up on Jim Pride after he called Bobby Gibson out. Dewayne actually tried to jump Jim while he was dropping his child off at headstart. Where they do that at?

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  3. I have one better than the first comment...why was nothing done to bobby gibson when he had the chief to fix the speeding ticket his daughter?????

    Daville

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  4. If you could get the address of the certification board and post it I would appreciate it. I have some complaints and if you know someone from Pville they might have some too. I heard he did a lot of harrassing there. I'm with you on the NAACP. Why would you involve them and Ben Winston was or still is affiliated with them?

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  5. This is not the first time Cleveland Gray has started something with Todd. Cleveland has met his match. And why wasn't Bobby's son arrested the night he went around jumping on people just because they liked something somebody posted on Facebook? Right is right and wrong is wrong and there is nothing right about Bobby Gibson.

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  6. This is not just a black issue, Bobby Gibson has caused havoc all over the town. I am not from Lumberton, but after what happened to me Sudnay, I don't think I will be returning. I was attending a funeral and while at the funeral, my car was towed and I wasn't parked in a tow away zone. Thanks to Mrs. Ockmond, I was able to get my car back without having to pay the $150 this nasty looking tow driver was trying to charge me. I have never heard of such and if the Lumberton Police Department is trying to run everyone away from Lumberton then keep up the bad work, but remember if the number of people coming to Lumberton continues to decrease, what will be the point of having so many police officers?

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  7. Here's the information you need about the certification board. . Send it State of Mississippi/Department of Public Safety/Division of Public Safety Planning/3750 I-55 North Frontage Road/Jackson, Mississippi 39211-6323/Attention: Robert Davis, Director

    Address the letter to:
    Certification Section of the Board on Law Enforcement Officer Standards and Training (BLEOST)

    include the full name of the officer:
    Officer Timothy Ryan Byrd

    Include the following in the letter: "this officer's conduct/actions has greatly diminished my trust in his ability to serve as a copetent and reliable law enforcement officer."

    Also state that " his continued offenses along with this record of conduct while employed with the Pearl River County Sheriff's Department is a major breach of the BLEOST minimum standards and the fact that he presented himself as a certified officer when he came to the City of Lumberton shows that he still has a loose interpertation of the laws he was sworn to uphold. We've asked the Lumberton Board of Aldermen to suspend this officer without pay until the appeal process is over and they refused to do so. Now, the safety and well-being of our communities and our children rest in your hand. We ask that you do not restore certification to Officer Timothy Ryan Byrd."

    Include some personal observations or personal experience you had with this officer and make sure you c.c. a copy of the letter to Donna Rogers, Certification Officer.

    Sign and mail the letter and in a couple of days call 601-987-3096 and ask Donna if she received your letter and tell her you want it placed in the packet for the November review of Officer Timothy Ryan Byrd's appeal.

    I wish there was some way we could hold a letter writing party and get as many letter sent in as possible, but I don't want to become a target, but Donna Rogers did tell me that the letters they receive will remain confidential. I will see if I could get in touch with some people and see if I could just get them a form letter and have them sign and date it and then just mail them off myself.

    Jon, I will contact you and I hope I can rely on you to write a letter as well. These letters need to be sent off by the 21st of the this month so they can be used for the November hearing. Please don't sit still on this one.

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  8. I just want to go on record and say that not all cops in Lumberton are bad or out to get people. I know this is a small community and I think it wrong to target people just because we say we're here to serve and protect. I believe in the laws I was sworn to uphold, but I also have a family to take care of. I hope things get better because I don't like the things I'm seeing and I am looking for another job. I don't know Jonathan, but I found it strange that along with the employee handbook, I was give the web address to the Lumberton Informer and told to check out Jonathan's facebook page so I would know what he looked like. I wasn't given this info by my boss, Chief Hobson, but by another officer.

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  9. well i don't know you but the car i saw being pulled in front of church in the right lane of hy 13 the lady does live here so get your shit right car and maybe nasty tow man knew the lady and did't want to charge her

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  10. I will say we a good bunch of police at one point . Even when smokey was chief , he had elsie, the mexican ,new york, franklin, butler, but the board played so many games with their pay they left . I think we need to bring back some of those officers cause at that time we saw a lot of drug arrests and searc warrents being served. Also bring back the 2 fellows from marion county they let go also , i am just saying i felt saver when we had them working , and didn't worry if my child was out side .But now days we have younger officers that are to gung ho and just want to carry folks to jail instead of helping them , maybe this is why Bobby Gibson wants them since his sister in law is the biggest pill dealer in town , and his nephew has been arrested sooo many times for drugs ,they even lost a car to it . no it show's Cleaveland Gray down here and he is with Bobby . He is one of the biggest drug dealers in purvis . So you take that in to account and tell me what is Bobby doing about drugs??? zero tolerance meaning he is doing zero cause to many of his kin folks are in , you could call M B N mississipp beuru of narcaotics to have the look at it as conspirecy or racketering case.WE NEED TO GO TO JACKSON AND TAKE OUR TOWN BACK THEY NEED TO MAKE ELSIE Chief and get rid of this bryd guy

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