The Augusta Administrative Services Committee will discuss a motion on Tuesday May 25 to restart the fire chief search. Hopefully the hiring process will be conducted in an open and transparent manner. This action if taken by the commission is the only path forward to healing the trust that has been broken between city leadership, taxpaying citizens and the firefighters that serve the community.
The wording of the agenda item is interesting. The item, which was placed on the agenda by District 7 Commissioner Sean Frantom, is not some safely worded request for discussion, but rather an actual motion to start over from scratch and allow for commission involvement. This is a stunning rebuke to City Administrator Odie Donald who tried to give Antonio Burden a job that he is clearly not qualified for.
Frantom is not a newcomer to Augusta politics, but rather, he is a seasoned politician who knows a thing or two about surviving the rough political waters flowing through the Garden City.
Frantom knows that in proposing such a motion without having six votes to support it is akin to begging the majority faction on the commission to place a dunce hat on his head and force him to sit in the corner.
Surely, Frantom, has seen the public outrage over the multiple scandals plaguing the highest levels of Augusta government.
If the secretive nature of the hiring of a fire chief were the only controversy facing government officials, then it could be said that Augusta is doing better than most cities. Indeed, if the fire chief issue was the only thing for voters to worry about, then many from afar would consider Augusta to have a well-run government.
However, the fire chief issue is just one dumpster fire among many raging in the parking lot of the Marble Palace.
Aside from the fire chief debacle, there is the battle for the mayor’s financial records and commissioner Sammie Sias’ ongoing FBI investigation.
Commissioners are supposed to be keeping a mindful eye on such matters, but over the years have allowed Davis to spend taxpayer funds with wild abandon and zero accountability.
The ongoing FBI and GBI investigations of District 4 Commissioner Sammie Sias for alleged financial misdeeds during his tenure of running the Jamestown Community Center has no end in sight.
Amazingly, Sias has not lost any political power on the commission over the serious allegations made against him, but rather has painted himself as a victim elevating himself to become the most powerful member of the majority faction.
Commissioners John Clarke and Catherine Smith McKnight were first shunned by their colleagues on the commission for daring to speak their mind, but the taxpayers vocal on social media treat them like rock stars for daring to speak out on their behalf.
Hopefully, the commissioners that want to continue to enjoy a public service career in Augusta are learning that their future success is not tied to Mayor Davis or Commissioner Sias, both of which are termed out.
A decision to start the fire chief process over and this time in a transparent manner would be a good step forward, to building back public confidence in Augusta government.
