A loss of trust is irreversible

Dear Editor: According to an article written by Penticton’s renowned reporter Joe Fries on March 15 in the Penticton Herald, Mayor Andrew Jakubeit arranged to meet privately with Trio owners at least five times last year. The mayor claims it is part of his job as promoter-inchief.

City Hall is constantly bombarded with ideas and plans for businesses, festivals and development. City Hall is a revolving door of ideas; some good some kooky. One of the important functions of a capable CAO is to vet these people and make sure they have a workable business plan. It is not the CAO’s job to decide whether that plan or development is good for the City but only whether they have a business plan that is on a sound business basis.

This is one of the reasons why it is important to have a knowledgeable CAO experienced in the field of civic politics. He/she keeps council out of trouble.

Once the CAO has decided a plan is workable he/she should speak to council and suggest council meet the supplicant to discuss the plan.

At no time should a mayor or councillor jeopardize their reputation by meeting privately with a supplicant. This is a small city; if the meeting is accidental, the supplicant should be told to discuss his ideas with the CAO. The mayor only has one vote and that vote is only a tie breaker in the event of a tied vote on council. The mayor is the spokesperson for the city but a quorum of council decides the issues.

When elected officials meet oneon-one privately with a supplicant that wishes council’s OK on a project that official leaves themselves open to allegations of collusion, bribery and breach of trust.

In my opinion once trust by the public is gone it is generally irreversible.

I am not suggesting in any way that Mayor Jakubeit or any member of this council acted in breach of trust of their position. I am sure Mayor Jakubeit faced with an untenable situation created by the uproar over Skaha Lake Park was doing his best to resolve the situation and protect the City’s best interests.

However politics is 90 per cent perception and reputations can be ruined when representatives of the people engage in these practices.

Private meetings should not be necessary and the mayor and council should end this practice immediately. Elvena Slump Penticton surely becoming more just and humanitarian. We have now accepted assisted death measures as being humane, I am unaware of any other “no harm to others codes” left to discard.

History proves it is impossible for us to always mange ourselves in a fully rational manner.

All of us can commit or attempt murder. It is humans acting out diverse internal and exterior life forces. Importantly, because humans are conflicted and confounded beings; we are imbued forces no one understands. The lack of fuller comprehension, results in faulty harmful judgments in self and collective cultural governing.

The recent rash of drug overdoses is not prevented by other selfpreserving imbued forces.

Intelligence is overwhelmed and easily pushed aside by our other forces

Today: boyfriend and mother torture and kill her eight-year-old son (LA Times). Years ago; mother loads car with five children and rolls car into lake. The boyfriends, I only want you, no children.

The foregoing are confounding example of millions occurring to a lesser or greater extent daily.

Normalcy is soured by our makeup, by agitated chemical interactions and retention of ignorant indoctrination.

My full article is posted at www.mcgillisintellect.typepad.com Bruce Alton McGillis

Penticton