The first person we need to hold accountable is me. In the past year we have seen one of Brockton's greatest oversight and mismanagement with a resource that we all can't live without, water. I have talked to many homeowners who have had their houses liened during this dispute with mismanagement and they were promised by the city that this would not happen during this investigation. A certain group of residents fought hard to bear light upon a situation that gave some people in government a ticket to write their own laws. Lack of leadership and insight led to the residents being blamed every step of the way for this problem from leaky toilets and trees sucking up the water, yet the residents were being held accountable. If not for the residents taken it upon themselves and getting involved I wonder if this is a problem that would of been swept under the rug. With houses being liened and water bills placed on peoples mortgages it was the residents who spoke up and told homeowners about a State form that could be filled out to contest this and not the city. During a meeting in January 2011 the residents rallied and taught homeowners how to fill these forms out. Not the city or the city solicitor but the residents. I commend those residents for their leadership and acting role in helping to show government oversight and changing the very laws which allowed a department to hold them accountable for the departments mismanagement. As Mayor I will always have my door open and have been appalled when residents told me they were turned down many times to see the Mayor when that administration prided itself that it practiced the open door policy and opportunity to share their thoughts, idea's and concerns about the city with the Mayor directly. I will hold every department head accountable for the treatment of the residents. The residents are owed answers that are complete and not by others city officials who are trying to protect their jobs. Personally I am ashamed as to how our city has handled this problem and will not allow an oversight like this to happen again without management being held accountable. I believe that government transparency and open door policy is vital to our citizens and not screened questions when it is time to come to see me. I need your input and will always have my door open and will not ask what your question is before you see me. I believe certain positions in Department Heads in Brockton should be elected positions and not appointed by the Mayor. I will look into this great oversight and also will look into giving more power to commissions like the water commission and believe that these commissions should be appointed by the people and not the Mayors office.
Remember we work for you and not the other way around and we are held accountable to you and you have every right to be explained in terms that you understand and not spoon fed well prepared answers that are rehearsed for days on end before you see me. We need to hold each and every department head responsible and stop treating the city like it is an entitlement to work for the city. WE WORK FOR YOU AND YOU ARE THE BOSS!
As Mayor I need the help of running the city like a multi-million dollar corporation. I need help with the budget and helping the residents where are money goes. I will no longer sit by and accept that one person in our government has the final say of over a quarter of a million dollars without oversight. I will go line by line to see where the money goes and truly believe that we has too much waste in this city and also we need to look at old contracts that are losing the city millions such as the Stonehill contract, the water desalinization plant and other agreements that have benefited few but not the masses. I will hold people accountable and in some cases some will lose their jobs. It is beyond my mind that we can shell out $100,00 for an water audit, find money for Beat Cops, find money for a deficit for next year, give $50,000 for a new school but still be told how we don't have money. I will get to the bottom of this.
I am reminded of a march that happened a couple of weeks ago called the Man up March and Movement where Mr.Gomes organized the march and ask the City for $400 and was told "we don't have it." yet we have money for an audit that told us what we already knew but can't give $400 for a peacefull productive march. There is an old saying " If it walks like a duck and quack like a duck, then its probably a duck."
Brockton needs answers today and not tommorow or next year and I will get those answers for Brockton.
