Lumberton Informer

According to Facebook, the regularly scheduled monthly meeting for March was supposed to be one of the most anticipated meetings since getting elected as an Alderman but that was not the case. There were several news outlets there so the narrative they're establishing for the City of Lumberton will probably continue for the rest of the week or until the next scandal. Hopefully, they's no more scandals for a long time but time will tell. Every seat was filled sans two seats on the front row, but a lot was covered and discovered during the March meeting. Here's a recap of some of the matters discussed and voted on at last night's meeting: The Day in the Park at 5th Avenue was approved. Elaine Robinson spoke and invited everyone to participate and donate towards the event. She said there will be an Easter egg hunt, food and fun for everyone from every community. Alderwoman at Large, Tina Speights, asked the board members to rent port-a-potties for the event ...

Before going to work, I like to sit out on the patio but I couldn't enjoy my morning dose of sunshine because of all the tall grass and the fact that I had to wade through this field of neglect to get to my garbage can. As I sat there with fears of the Zeka virus and Lyme disease running through my mind, I recalled a time when managers of the Mississippi Regional Housing Authority 8 would evict residents that failed to pay their lawn care fees. Now the same corporation is slacking in their responsibilities and have failed to properly maintain the lawn all Summer but that's the nature of MRHA 8; they will adjust the rules to fit their purpose. They're in a position to help people but they seem to love employees that will lie, cheat and possibly steal in order to advance their agenda. What they failed to realize, if people no longer needed housing, they would be out of a job. As you know, I've had dealings with the manager of Pe...

Today is officially the last day of the current Mayor and Board of Alderpersons. I also heard that today is also Danny Davis' last day as Public Works Director. If the rumor is true then I can truly say that things are already getting better for the City of Lumberton. I'm sure Danny think he's crippling the City of Lumberton by resigning before the new board takes office but he's actually helping the City of Lumberton Move Forward. Since the inception of this blog, Davis "quit" his job several times because he knew at least one board member would beg him to return. It's amazing that he claimed month after month, year after year that he loved this city but words are meaningless if they're not supported by your actions. If he loved this city, there would be an employee at the Public Works Department that had the education, experience and expectation to carry on in his steed but Davis made sure that the ones ...

I remember when I decided to start the Lumberton Informer. I was sitting at the barber shop, now Tina's Salon, and I was talking about the election with Wade. During the discussion, he asked me what did I think about the election. At that time, we were weeks away from the election but I told him that I didn't trust Bobby Gibson and Timothy Johnson because I felt they were running to serve Ben Winston and Paul Ockmond. I also told him I was waiting to see who's the third partner and it was later revealed through their voting pattern that Kent Crider was their other partner in crime. So, their attempt to control the City of Lumberton has been in the works for years; it didn't just happen. I told Wade that I needed to establish a forum where we can hold elected officials accountable. Over the years, I've gotten many things wrong because my access to public information was often restricted. As a matter of fact, there's a current investigation...

Just received a call from a person that was informed that he was "BANNED" from Pecan Ridge. I asked him a few questions and from what he told me, the manger did not follow the proper procedures. I contacted the Lumberton Police Department and they told me that the manager gave them a copy of the ban list and I requested a copy. For some reason, tenants are told they could be evicted for allowing people on the ban list to visit but the tenants are not given a copy of the actual ban list. Recently, a tenant with health issues was about to get evicted because of the ban list but no one had a copy of the list saying the person that visited her unit was banned. I haven't received a copy of the ban list but once I receive a copy I will not post the names because I don't want them to get violated.....again. It's enough that their names is printed on a paper without due process but I will contact as many of them as I possibly can to see if I could get them to f...

Just one week ago, the citizens of Lumberton voted to #MoveLumbertonForward but the agents of MRHA 8 and others are trying to derail that change. I've been adjusting to my recent win while dealing with rumors on top of rumors. After getting calls from people outside the State of Mississippi and receiving screenshots from various conversations on social media, I decided to do a little investigation. I've barely had time to settle down and embrace the change that the citizens of Lumberton voted for on June 6, 2017 but it seems that I have yet another fight on my hands. LeaAnn Jones-Ulmer, a member of the LEDC and an employee of the MRHA 8, was allegedly going around telling people that I wasn't going to be able to represent Ward 3 because they're [MRHA 8] going to make sure I'm evicted. Keep in mind that a few months ago, I filed a report with the MRHA 8 regional manager about the fact that Ulmer was discussing my files with people o...

The meeting started out as usual. Noticeable absent was the members of the Lumberton Police Department but shortly after arriving, I received a call informing me why the police were not present at the meeting. However, there was an officer in the audience that was hired as a full-time/part-time officer at a rate of $12.50/hour. His name is Phillip Duckworth and he's replacing Officer Linda Marie McKibbin. The first item on the agenda was to allow Mr. David Hatt to address the board about brining a skydiving business to the City of Lumberton. Thankfully, he was not present because I don't trust this board to negotiate a contract that will benefit the City of Lumberton. They tabled a motion to repair the windshield of Martha Youngblood because Danny Davis said none of his workers were mowing grass at the time of the incident. There were some lackluster reports given by the Public Works Director and City Clerk. Danny Davis warned the board that we were going to fail the wa...

I was blogging the other day and stumbled upon some important information. It seems that Lumberton Code Enforcer/Building Inspector, Paul Ockmond, is allegedly working under the previous inspector's certification and milking the city and citizens in the process. Stealing Southern Baptist Preachers??? Tell me it ain't so. Now I know why Paul Ockmond was slithering through my community, offering to pay someone to run against me. I discovered this Ponzi scheme accidentally. Imagine what I would find once I have access as an elected official? That thought has many scared and they're actually willing to pay to keep that from happening. What are they hiding? Are the ones currently serving on the board in on the scam? The bible carrying ministers seem very comfortable with the crew that's already in place; for some reason. We all know there's a plethora of individuals on Lumberton's payroll that's about as effective as set of old butter kni...

I stopped doing review of the board meetings but since this one was short and ineffective, I decided to post a review. Abbott and Hardy (Crider and Buckley) had their routine rehearsed perfectly when they downplayed the value of some shelves at the old Lumberton Hospital. The board declared the shelves as surplus so an undisclosed person could purchase them for $100. At first I didn't think much about the deal but when Johnny and Kent kept trying to convince everyone the shelves had no value I realized that they probably saw the items on an Antique Trading Show and using this as an attempt to swindle the City of Lumberton once again. The department dead-heads gave their monthly monologues. Prior to the meeting, Merlene allegedly made various claims about the late inflated water bills but during the meeting she settled on the story that the bills were higher because they included a 40 day billing cycle because of the holiday season. The person over the ...

The second meeting of 2017 will take place tonight. It is rumored that the Lumberton Board of Aldermen will sell the National Guard Armory tonight. Instead of keeping the building and turning it into a community center, shelter, senior citizen center or to house the Lumberton Volunteer Fire Department, Kent Crider is pushing for the sale of the building before the 2017 election. The building was given to the City of Lumberton and instead of using it to enhance the City of Lumberton, they're rushing to sell the building. I just started my subscription to the Lsmar Times and I didn't get an opportunity to see if the notice to bidders was advertised. I know bids are sealed but with the crew we have at city hall, I don't trust the process. Unfortunately, I saw what happened when the City of Lumberton rushed to sell the Movie Star building; everyone made money from the deal except the City of Lumberton. It was my hope that the city would keep the building o...

Imagine my surprise when I heard about Paul Ockmond going to and fro like a irritating Chihuahua looking for someone to devour or bite on the ankle. Although I suspected for years that Paul and his crew were buying votes but now they're looking for someone to run against me and they're allegedly looking to buy votes to keep Kent Crider in the Mayor's seat. Apparently the Enterprising Bubbas fell short when they looked were slithering through the streets of Lumberton, looking for a candidate to split the votes in an effort to keep Alderman Quincy Rogers out of the Mayor's office so they're resorting to "buying" votes with promises of things to come and the ever allusive jobs that will come to fruition something after another four years of deception. Allegedly, of course. Just so we're clear, there will be jobs and an influx of money but it will be for the Enterprising Bubba's not you. They will give a few of th...

The video of the meeting with the Lamar County Library Board is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the dysfunctionality of Lumberton's elected and appointed officials. Before Crider's misguided rant at the meeting, he was giving more misinformation in an interview with the Lamar Times . For some reason, Crider is seemingly at a loggerhead with Lamar County officials; except for his pocket judge Bill Anderson. In last week's edition of the Lamar Times it was noted that the Lamar County Board of Supervisors want to use the National Guard Armory as a community center and possible fire station but Crider is set on selling the building instead of turning it over the Lamar County. When asked about giving the building to Lamar County, Crider responded "We would be crazy to give it to them." Normally, I would agree but Lamar County has proven that they're good stewards over the facilities that were turned over to them by the City...

Lindsey Carter was one of those behind the scenes attorneys. I've attended a lot of board meetings and I can't remember one instance where he voiced his concerns about protecting the City of Lumberton. Wait. There was this one instance. I recall when Mayor Miriam R. Holder was going to read a memo or note she received from the city clerk and she was going to read the contents of the letter. Carter advised her that she could not give details of the letter because it was a personnel issue. Other than that one incident, I can't recall any other time when Carter advised the board of their violations or possible violations according to the law. Well, maybe his sit back and watch, I'll get back with you, I got to research that, I 'm busy but here's my bill approach changed after the board decided not to respond to the letter of complaint I submitted regarding the behavior of Daniel "Danny" Davis. Wait, I might be wrong on...

When you know what you're dealing with you know how to adjust you plan of action. Last night, the elected vipers of Lumberton held a special called meeting to tie up the ends of a CDBG Grant. However, it was interesting that they included an agenda item to sign a resolution establishing a code of conduct for officers and employees of the City of Lumberton. Just a few days ago, the board set a precedent for employee behavior by refusing to reprimand an city employee after he assaulted a citizen while on duty. Now, they're backpedling and trying to cover their bonds behinds. You mean to tell me that the City of Lumberton does not have a code of conduct in place for it's employees? Is it not in the employee handbook. I'm guessing that's why Merlene Wall has refused to respond to my FOI letter requesting a copy of the City of Lumberton employee handbook. Maybe it's still sitting on her desk. She will either respond to my request or respon...

"And if a house be divided against itself, that house cannot stand." blockquote> On this the sixth day of 2017 and the City of Lumberton is more divided than ever. Just when you think the corruption that has plagued this city couldn't sink any lower you discover there's a basement. I've blogged for years and over the years I was called everything except a child of God; people constantly made up stories about me. At one point, there were blogs dedicated to blog about my blog. For years, there's been lies told about me and most of those telling the lies always posted anonymously. Despite how you feel about me, I never had to shield my identity through anonymous posts. Despite all the vitriolic commentary dedicated to speculations about my life, I never assaulted anyone because I knew they were lies. In this county, in this withering town, everyone loves freedom of speech as long as they agree with your speech. I still find ...

In case you didn't get the opportunity to attend last night's board meeting, here's a brief recap. The board spent about 2 hours in executive session discussing the police and public works department. When they returned to the meeting, Merlene Wall announced that "no actions were taken" but Alderman Quincy Rogers corrected her. Rogers made a motion to suspend Public Works Director, Danny Davis, without pay pending the outcome of the assault charge. Alderman Quincy Rogers made it crystal clear that the motion died because no one seconded the motion so they could not vote on the matter. I should be shocked, but looking at the people that are sitting in the seats as OUR representatives; I'm not surprised. Keep in mind that everyone on the board, with the exception of Johnny Buckley, claim to be Christian. Susan Crittertown wormed her way onto the board through the quilting ministry at the Lumberton Methodist Churc...