It's Time for Accountablility and Results

A comment was made several weeks ago about Mayor Holder. Some anonymous person stated that she deserved to be disrespected by the aldermen because of her behavior during her tenure as Alderwoman-at-Large. They also stated that what goes around comes around, and that justifies the voting block that has been established by Johnson, Gibson, and Crider. Well, there is a statement that says the old law of an eye for an eye leaves everyone blind. But I am wondering if the person that made the comment is really aware of what happened during the last administration? More than likely, they are relying on second hand information because if they attended the meetings they would have known that Alderwoman Holder fought tirelessly to keep several grants that are now being used by the city. If it was not for Alderwoman Holder, we would not have the Downtown Renovation Grant. If Alderwoman Holder was not on the board, we would not be enjoying the new walking track and other facilities at the 5th Avenue Park b/c the previous mayors did not want the grants used for that particular park. Despite what you may think, this is not about revenge; the votes of our elected officials should be based on what's best for the citizens of Lumberton. It took two phone calls and several clicks of the computer to find out what was going on with the trailers that were stored in our city. Did our elected officials act on that information? No. Instead of doing what the citizens wanted them to do; they began to rally behind the individual that was responsible for bringing the trailers into the city. Alderman Johnson would like the residents of Lumberton to believe that his motion to reorganize the Lumberton Planning and Zoning Committee was not a personal attack. Alderman Crider would like the residents of Lumberton to believe that his motion to disband the Lumberton Planning and Zoning Committee was not motivated by personal issues. If their actions was not based on personal issues, and they simply wanted to get all the committees on a basic format, why haven't any other committee been placed on the agenda to meet with the Board of Aldermen. The Lumberton Planning and Zoning Committee is the only committee that meets regularly, but we are supposed to believe that the constant efforts to disband this group are not personally motivated. Unfortunately, we have a group of elected officials that don't expect much from us or for us. This board has tried on numerous occasions to put us in our place and discourage us from following our own beliefs, our own passions and the best ideals that are in the hearts of the citizens of Lumberton. There are members on the board of aldermen (Johnson, Gibson, and Crider) that did not get the mayor they wanted, but they got the mayor the citizens of Lumberton wanted. In order to build a better Lumberton, our elected officials must realize that they are not here to serve their family members or their business partners; they are here to serve the citizens of Lumberton. Progress requires partnership. Our mayor, our board members and even our District 2 supervisor, must realize that compromise is not easily achieved, but it's possible and necessary for progress.