January 06, 2007
Saturday

The first thing one should know when running for public office: City Council, Borough Assembly, School Board, or KIC Tribal Council is that these are policy making entities, not managerial positions. Policy makers make policy and managers manage; the two functions never intermingle.

Whenever policy makers interfere with the day-to-day managerial duties, the process suffers greatly. Managers of large organizations are usually highly educated, experienced, well-spoken leaders. They know the organization in their control better than most or any policy maker could ever know or understand it. Yet so many "leaders" involve themselves in functions outside of the policy realm. This, in my view, is a violation of the trust relationship between the policy makers, management and the membership as a whole. It cripples an organization and that s what has happened at KIC.

The current KIC tribal council has chosen to eliminate the managers and take over the day-to day operations themselves. The last General Manager, who they courted for 18 months, lasted about 5 weeks. That made about 8 people who have sat in that chair for KIC in the last two years! The long-term Deputy General Manager chose to find other employment after the relentless onslaught of attacks from the current Council proved to be too much. After the Council fired the last General Manager the current council directed the new interim Manger to put the Health Director on administrative leave; outrageous. No amount of pleading from the membership or the Health Board and some of the doctors at KIC swayed this council to reverse themselves from this terrible decision that has added to the lack of managers at KIC that were fired or run off.

In the month of November the council met no less that 17 times and gave themselves a raise in pay; presumably to compensate themselves for their new managerial duties. Between his duties as a school bus driver, the current KIC president, Norman Arriola, chooses to camp out in the KIC offices on a daily basis, one could only assume, since no new policies are being brought forth, that he is interjecting himself and his wisdom into the operations at KIC; not in any new policy direction. That's why we need new leadership at KIC.

We need leaders that understand their role in government. Stability is key as well as a religious adherence to the policy makers make policy and mangers manage rule. The current group doesn't have a clue. Except for the honorable Marly Edenso, who has served the tribe with distinction and for the sake of KIC, do not re-elect the incumbents. They have been a complete disaster.

Thanks for listening.
Samuel Bergeron


Received January 05, 2007 - Published January 06, 2006

About: "Samuel Bergeron is a local business man and a life long Alaskan. Sam is a General Construction contractor (Bergeron Construction Company LLC) and majority owner in True North Development Company LLC and is busy raising a family and enjoying life in Ketchikan."

On the Web:

KIC 2007 Annual Election - January 15, 2007: List of Candidates & Election Information

 

 

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