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CHAIR: Yeah, right now. <br />FOLENA: Sorry, sir. <br />CHAIR: Mr. Smith, you want to add a few words? <br />SMITH: Not really much. If you folks have any questions, certainly I'd be <br />CHAIR: - -We'll hold our questions till after we hear their side. I'm sure we'll have <br />some. <br />SMITH: All right, very well. Thank you, sir. <br />CHAIR: Thank you. So why don't we call up right now Councilwoman Naeole, Mr. <br />Udovic. <br />UDOVIC: Good morning, Mr. Chair and members of the Board of Ethics. I've provided <br />correspondence with the Board which I think outlines our position fairly succinctly. I <br />don't think that this Board has the, quite frankly, the authority or the power to determine <br />what people can say, think, feel, hear, or speak about during council meetings, quite <br />frankly. And the real issue I think that we're involved within this particular case I think <br />was brought up by I think it was Mr. Smith, Gregory Smith, the last person who was <br />present, when he said that what in his public testimony that what they're really talking <br />about was that Ms. Naeole, by her statements, were wounding their sensibilities, and they <br />don't appreciate that kind of comment. Well, I don't think that's a violation of the Ethics <br />Code of the state or for the County of Hawai `i, and I think that's what we're here for. <br />Remember that council members are elected because they have opinions. They're elected <br />because of who they are. The members of her district elected her because of who she is, <br />and she's there to represent them. And if you start restricting how she represents them, <br />then quite frankly I think that we've really gone and taken a step backwards. I don't <br />think we have anything else to add. <br />CHAIR: Okay. Board members, do you have any questions for why don't you stay <br />therefor a second any questions for Ms. Naeole, Mr. Udovic? Yes, Arthur? <br />MARTIN: The petitions seem to be based on 13 statements supposedly Mrs. Naeole said. <br />Are those accurate or not? <br />UDOVIC: We didn't determine whether they were accurate or not. <br />CHAIR: Yes? <br />GENTRY: I was wondering, when you took office, Emily, was there an orientation for <br />proper decorum of office? Did they provide new council members an orientation on what <br />you can and cannot do during the course of a in conducting council business? <br />17 <br />