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minutes 03-25-00Page 16 of 34
<br />running for any given seat then the same process, you guys got to come forth and question them and, of course, hold them
<br />accountable. I don’t think the grass roots is lost is what I’m saying, and that was the question that I was posing.
<br />BONK: Well, the fact is, in America, the grass roots is having less and less participation in their elections. They don’t even
<br />vote. Okay? Half of the people in America, so there’s evidence, if you need evidence, that we’re losing a grass roots base.
<br />There’s facts. People in America voting less and less. What we need more of is more information for the people, not less.
<br />And I think non-partisan - the issue gets confused with most people because they think all of a sudden they’re going to have
<br />more information about the candidates. The people even ask me ‘wouldn’t it be better for you as a Green Party candidate to
<br />actually go for non-partisan elections?’ Probably, for myself, as an established candidate already, with name recognition, hey,
<br />non-partisan elections might not effect me at all. However, for a first time running candidate, without any background in
<br />campaigns and name recognition, a new candidate coming to run, if they have no party base to start with, they’re going to
<br />have to spend a lot of money just to get some of that name recognition. A lot.
<br />G. MARTIN: Okay.
<br />BONK: And there’s always somebody from the ‘old boys’ putting in way more money, to begin with, with their candidate.
<br />G. MARTIN: That will continue no matter what, though, I think.
<br />BONK: I actually have more faith in the system.
<br />G. MARTIN: Well, last question. You made comment about looking at non-partisan, and I think you were referring to Oahu,
<br />and possibly other places, with individuals in trouble with the law. I don’t think non-partisan has anything to do with a person
<br />making a decision to do illegal activity.
<br />BONK: Actually, I disagree because parties are still responsible and accountable to these people, and if there’s trouble,
<br />there’s embarrassment for a larger group. And they come and they try to weed out some of these kind of corrupt activities.
<br />Okay? I really think that if we start to lessen our accountability, even with ideas, then we’re going to start to have less and
<br />less responsible leadership.
<br />RAY: Sue, you have a question?
<br />IRVINE: Thank you. Yes, I do have a couple of things to say. I want to thank Keiko for coming. I wish you’d brought some
<br />of your ideas to us a little earlier, Civil Grand Jury, that type of thing, and to tell you that we are, at this point, we’re still
<br />looking at the Legislative Reference Office. We’ve talked about audits. We can’t come up with a scenario that works any
<br />better than what we’re doing right now, considering the fact that that office is entirely appointed by the County Council. If
<br />you have some ideas, send them to us, or write it down, some real solid ideas. And also, the Planning Commission - We’ve
<br />been around and around, should we elect them. Well, maybe only certain people with real interest in those issues would run.
<br />Should they be appointed by individual Council members? I don’t know. Today, I guess, you’re more or less saying that they
<br />should just be advisory which I don’t know why anybody would go to two meetings a month for five years just to be advising
<br />because they have a huge workload at this time, and often their secretaries can’t even keep up to get them the paperwork
<br />more than 24 hours before they have to sit down and hear things.
<br />BONK: Can I say something about that?
<br />IRVINE: Sure.
<br />BONK: I would agree with you that in order to make it work, an advisory Planning Commission would have to have a very,
<br />very strong Planning Department with professionals that are real planners, number 1. You know we have a Planning
<br />Department that has positions for planners that aren’t filled right now, and so there’s a big burden and weight that’s being put
<br />on other bodies because the Planning Department isn’t carrying out, I think, a lot of their responsibilities. So the Council has
<br />more pressure to do things, and the Planning Commission has been given more responsibilities over the years. In fact, just
<br />recently with the Zoning Code changes, even more responsibilities. The Planning Commission, I think, was set up to be more
<br />advisory, to be representative of the general public. We don’t have any qualifications for them to have planners on the
<br />Planning Commission. However, you have to have real professionals, like you’re talking about in these other departments,
<br />that are initiating all these proposals that are coming forth to the Planning Commission, and eventually even to the Council.
<br />The Council’s not filled with planners either. They’re elected lay people from the community. So you need these
<br />professionals. Now, this is where I think we can start tightening up, is within the Planning Department, giving back a lot of
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