2012-09-12 Board of Ethics minutes

Home

MR. DILL: Good morning, Mr. Yagong. As you all know, Board members, the letter does include a request to initiate an investigation to see if there are any violations into the County of Hawai‘i Board of Ethics Code. And before we move on, Mr. Yagong, I think we do have some questions for you. And I guess the first question I would have is what your role is in your daughter’s campaign for District One. MR. YAGONG: I’m her father. MR. DILL: Nothing more than that? MR. YAGONG: Well, obviously in helping with her campaign, that includes pounding signs, going door-to-door, supporting her in any way I can. If she goes to forums or she has activities, I’d be part of that as well, probably doing just what any other father would do if their child or their spouse or their relative would be part of a campaign. MR. DILL: With all your experience, I’m sure you’ve got a lot that you can share with her. Okay, Board members, do you guys have any questions for Mr. Yagong? MR. YAGONG: Can I ask you a quick question though, first of all, Mr. Chairman, if I could? Because I did look at the complaint that you folks received. And it talks about State HRS law that talks about being a precinct official--if a parent or someone that’s running for office—if you have a parent, that that person would not or could not participate as a precinct official. MR. DILL: For the record, you’re referring to HRS 11-72(b)(3)? MR. YAGONG: Yes. And let me just say this for the record. I was quite surprised to see that as part of the complaint, because never in the last three months, or last six months, or last 52 years that I’ve been alive, have I ever stated that I would like to be a precinct official or work as a precinct official or to work in any capacity as a precinct official. Obviously the rule is there for a very good reason, obviously, because certainly you don’t want to be parked during election day at the precinct where voting is taking place, to having a relative work certainly within that district or one of the precincts within that district. And not only would that be uncomfortable I think for the people that work there, but it’s certainly not an appropriate thing to do. So I understand why the rule is there, and I support it wholeheartedly. But I just wanted to state for the record, never have I said it privately or publicly, or anywhere within the 52 years that I’ve been alive, that I wanted to serve as a precinct official. So I’m not sure how that got in there, or why there’s this sort of an insinuation that because I’m a parent, that I would somehow become a precinct official. MR. DILL: I’ve got a question. Who hires the precinct officials? MR. YAGONG: That’s all done by the County Clerk’s Office. MR. DILL: The County Clerk’s Office, okay. And the Council—the entire Council oversees the County Clerk’s Office?