Lisbon, Why Don't You Use Your Ethics Panel?

By Todd Comber

At this time of despair with your local form of government and their recent actions or lack of actions;

• 1. the convoluted management of your town by manager Stephen Eldridge
• 2. the disdain actions by Chief of Police David T. Brooks 
• 3. the community wide implications of what amounts to nothing more   than   'piss-poor' management by Town Government
• 4. the immoral actions of current Town Council Chair Mike Bowie

Why don't you use what we, as the Lisbon Concerned Citizens, gave life to, the Ethics Panel?

 Let this governing body of residents hear all the pertinent information that should be made public and render the course of action that best suits the great people of Lisbon.  You have elected people to represent you on the Town Council that have also failed you because of their own self interests and unethical behavior.  Some like councilor Dale Crafts flip flops around the issues more than a fish out of water and avoids the responsibility to vote on issues that are controversial.  The self serving interests of some councilors has run your ship aground and though they are trying to get it back into the channel for safe passage,  remember, they themselves collectively are responsible for putting you there. 

The Ethics Panel should be allowed to handle such issues as presented recently and discussed at every cup of coffee in town, and formulate a plan of action to resolve the present problematic issues.  By doing so, would put your ship on the right course for a successful voyage into the troubled economic times that lay ahead of us all.  You have appointed some very good people to this panel and have only used them once.  They were used to render a decision on then newly elected Roger Cote's actions, and deemed that he had done nothing wrong as a councilor.   He was quickly brought in front of the Ethics Panel by a unanimous vote of the Town Councilors.   Just click on the Ethics archive here on the Lisbon Reporter for more clarification of that one.

The time is right for this to happen now, but you as citizens have the duty to see that it does.  Nothing will be done unless you want it to be.  The filing of petitions will eventually lead to the same outcome but, in my opinion, will not have the greatest impact.  By using what you have in place as your form of government watchdog, the Ethics Panel, that will instill confidence and rebuild the trust in the community that has been diminished recently by your Town Council form of governing body.

A petition is being circulated now but it's success will not bring the issues forth that you need to be made aware of.  By convening the Ethics Panel, all information will be made public as it should be and will not be swept under the rug.