|
minutes 04-01-00Page 8 of 22
<br />I don’t have the figures to really compare the island-wide race compared to the single district race, and I think money is not
<br />really where I’m at.
<br />FRANKEL: I think you raise an important issue, and I think you should look at that information. There are going to be
<br />anomalies. For example, we all know that Apana did not spend as much money as Dante Carpenter, but I think we all realize
<br />that that was an anomaly if you take a look at it, and look at it statistically. Let’s look at the successful Council races. Look at
<br />how much the average member spent in the last election, or the last two elections. Compare that to the average amount spent
<br />on the winning candidate, or even combine the winning and losing candidates for Mayor. You’ll find, in the at-large races, far
<br />more money was spent. Far more money. You may find, like I say, one or two anomalies but on average, by having more
<br />races require more money, you do reduce the importance of the individual voter. That’s something that the League of Women
<br />Voters has been working on.
<br />HERKES: I don’t agree. I’m a member of the League of Women Voters.
<br />FRANKEL: Yes, I know.
<br />IRVINE: May I?
<br />RAY: Sue.
<br />IRVINE: I’d like to thank you for your comments on the at-large seats, and -
<br />HERKES: She’s from Hilo.
<br />IRVINE: Hey, it’s not going to help Kona to have at-large seats. And I thank you for your comments also on the Department
<br />of Environmental Services, which I have been very supportive of. The question I have for you, though, in Kona we heard a
<br />heck of a lot about how our Planning Commission should just be advisory, or done away with, or this, that, or the other. Now,
<br />that is true in Honolulu, I know. And you’re saying you think we did the right thing in strengthening this?
<br />FRANKEL: Yes, I actually just had a conversation with Mike Christopher to correct him in some of the statements that he
<br />made at the Charter Commission meeting. Having an advisory Planning Commission is the absolute wrong thing to do. And
<br />there are a number of complicated legal explanations to that. There’s a couple of Supreme Court cases that are particularly
<br />relevant. I think what you are hearing from folks at your previous meeting was based on a lot of misunderstanding of the role
<br />and the authority of the Planning Commission. As you know, the reasons that you have those sentences (e) and (f) are based
<br />on idiosyncracies of what happened in the previous Charter Commission thing. It’s not going to have the negative effects that
<br />people are fearful of, and I’m willing to help spread the word on that. If you make the Planning Commission advisory, the
<br />real ramification is that you’ve increased the power of the County Council. Which is better, I don’t know. But, there are a
<br />number of legal ramifications out there which are kind of hard to explain. I don’t know if you want me to go into all of them.
<br />And since you guys haven’t considered making the Planning Commission advisory at this point, it seems too late to even go
<br />down that road.
<br />RAY: John, you had a comment?
<br />SANTANGELO: Yes, I don’t want to do this with everybody, but I’m really interested in depth of your thoughts in what’s
<br />going on here, so I want to give you a statement because I’d like you to comment to that. Having served on the Council, I
<br />come from this. Now, the reason I’m struggling with this, again to explain, is because I served on the Council. There are
<br />times in which you can get so wrapped up in an issue with the facts and how you understand, as a father of your people, how
<br />good this is, and yet, sometimes that causes you not to listen to people. Here’s something with the at-large that I support, and
<br />I want to tell you why. But you know what, I’m not going to make that mistake again. If people really don’t support this, I’m
<br />going to remove my support for it, but we’ve had so little dialogue. Okay. Sitting on the Council I watched this, what do you
<br />call it, colonialism, this territorial part of it – individuals grabbing for things that weren’t beneficial to that district, but it was
<br />a trophy to show the people. They were running for office. I, personally, am trying to differentiate and understand that there’s
<br />a difference between politics and government. Good government is not politics. Good government is public service. It’s
<br />quality of life. Okay. The first thing our country did when they formed a two-year representational body was in three years
<br />from that, they formed a Constitution and they put in the Senate to balance this two-year term that was just given to the
<br />whims of public opinion rather than what was really good government. And so, the at-large appeals to me because I’ve
<br />watched, on the Council, people run from day one to day one. Your first job in politics is to get elected. Your second job is to
<br />get re-elected. How does that serve the people? You talk about money. The power that we have in our hands today, where
<br />file://\\coh01\cohweb\council\charter_commission\minutes\minutes 04-01-00.htm7/1/2011
<br />
<br />
|