Monday, October 29, 2012
**** Please see the Oct. 23, 2012 Laguna Hills Watch Dog City Council Report below this statement
** SPECIAL EDITION - Statement from Raghu Mathur, Laguna Hills 2012 City Council Candidate - see more at http://raghumathur.blogspot.com/
Sunday, October 28, 2012
Desperate Laguna Hills Mayor Melody Carruth distorts Dr. Mathur's record as Chancellor. Mayor Melody Carruth and the long-term council members are desperate to distort my outstanding record as Chancellor by pointing the residents to the false statements made by the disgruntled faculty union member on his blog. This is being done in order to make sure that their handpicked candidates for City Council election will maintain the status quo in the City.
Residents of Laguna Hills are earnestly seeking “change in the direction” of city governance. Specifically, there is need for reform of excess management compensation, respectful treatment of residents and businesses, and further recruitment and development of businesses and implementation of grand jury recommendation in the areas of transparency, accountability and ethics at the City Hall.
I am a change agent and when elected, I will deliver on these much needed changes.
Reason for my retirement
I had the privilege of serving as Chancellor of the South Orange County Community College District for nine years, which is considered a rare term in academic administration of higher eduction in California as well as the nation.
Per direction and support of a majority of the Board of Trustees, I was engaged in tough and successful contract negotiations with the faculty and staff unions due to declining economic conditions affecting our taxpayers. However, a disgruntled faculty union member has created blog with continued irresponsible, unprofessional and defamatory false statements about me and my outstanding work as Chancellor.
I retired from the college district when an elected member of the Board of Trustees directed, and, in fact, pressured me to perform an illegal and unethical task, which would have cost an unnecessary expense of more than $250,000 annually for many years.I declined to perform such a task because it was against my principles and conscience as well as against the best interest of the students, and the taxpayers. Therefore, I respectfully and honorably retired.
** The Orange County Register Newspaper has endorsed Andrew Blount and Raghu Mathur for Laguna Hills City Council - They said, "The Laguna Hills City Council has been divided in recent years over issues of transparency and compensation for the city manager. Two incumbents, Joel Lautenschleger and L. Allan Songstad, were up for reelection this year, but decided not to run. That presents Laguna Hills voters an opportunity to add two new members to the Council who can help move it beyond its internecine squabbles and deal squarely with transparency, executive compensation and other issues facing the city of some 30,000 residents."
About Raghu Mathur's Retirement from the College District the Orange County Register said - "As a former chancellor of the South Orange County Community College District, Mr. Mathur had an uneasy relationship with employee unions after tough negotiations over compensation and benefits. Nevertheless, he lists "civility" in city government as one of his priorities on the council, along with transparency, accountability and ethical behavior.
The Register's Editorial Board endorses Andrew Blount and Raghu Mathur."
About Candidate Bill Hunt they said - "There were news reports last summer that he was being considered for chief of Fullerton's troubled police department, a position that may better suit his skill set than serving on the Laguna Hills City Council."
About Candidate Dore Gilbert they said - "Mr. Gilbert decided to run for council only after Mr. Lautenschleger and Mr. Songstad, whom he counts as longtime friends, informed him they weren't running. We imagine some voters might wonder whether Mr. Gilbert would chart his own course on the council or follow a path set by his friends, the outgoing councilmen."
To see everything they said about all the candidates for Laguna Hills City Council - click on http://www.ocregister.com/opinion/city-374220-council-hills.html
The Laguna Hills Watch Dog also strongly supports Raghu Mathur and Andrew Blount!
***DON'T FORGET TO VOTE ON OR BEFORE NOVEMBER 6, 2012. ***
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8 comments:
I have a friend whose husband is a Sheriff in LA. She said Bill Hunt came to visit her as he was walking around the neighborhood. She asked him why he was running for City Council.
He told her that Joel and Allan had contacted him because they want to keep everything status quo with the City Council.
The old guard is going to do what they can to stay in power. Fortunately, we have had some change that is positive, and with Mathur and Blount it will continue.
And Jean, thank you so very much for caring about our City and providing the balance that is so badly needed. We are very grateful to you. Thank you again!
Do not think for a moment that the two who decided to run are not interested in City Council any longer. If they ran, they would term out next time they ran for election. My thought is they are taking a term off in order to get on in the next election the following year. Filling the Council with 'their' picks will give them full control next year.
Smart, yes, have our back as a community? Take a look at the City Manger's salary and decide for yourself.
In addition to sending us her opinion re. her accusations against Council Member Kogerman at the Oct. 23, 2012 City Council Meeting, Mayor Carruth responded to this announcement from Dr. Raghu Mathur with a phone call to us and a laundry list of accusations against Dr. Mathur that included poor to no documentation. Her accusations could not be substantiated and/or could not be accessed through her list of dates from LA Times Newspaper archives and her opinions exceeded the length of comments we are able to publish, however we were able to quickly research her accusations against Council Member Kogerman from our own files and the Council Meeting audio files on the City of Laguna Hills web site as follows:
At October 23, 2012 Laguna Hills City Council Meeting under PUBLIC COMMENTS for Item 7.2.1 - Appointment of a Labor Negotiator - for the Annual Performance Evaluation of the City Manager, Mayor Carruth, accused City Council Member Kogerman of being to blame for the failure of the recent 8 months of closed session negotiations and the $23,000 to $30,000 of wasted taxpayer money for a labor negotiator for the City Manager stating to Kogerman - "you in a public meeting called for his resignation and the moment those words left your lips that was over". So if anyone is to blame for losing taxpayer dollars you are the one."
Mayor Carruth's e-mail dated 10-3-2012 stated:
I checked the April 24th transcript and listened to the audio. I stand by my comments. Councilmember Kogerman missed the deadline for her report. City Manager Channing did not place her report on the agenda-delaying its placement for two weeks. During the April 24th City Council meeting Councilmember Kogerman used phrases "abuse of power" and stated city manager behavior (delaying an agenda item) "will not be tolerated....I will personally recommend that the individual be terminated or censured." Such threatening words and phrases made in public (during the ongoing intense and sensitive contract negotiations) are deemed to be violations of good faith negotiations. Either Councilmember Kogerman used poor judgement in publicly attacking the City Manager or she deliberately wanted to abort the negotiation process. It is one or the other. Melody Carruth
So, we at the Laguna Hills Watch Dog very carefully checked the tape on the City web site from the April 24, 2012 Laguna Hills City Council Meeting (that can still be heard online on the City's web site) again, and found that Mayor Carruth is again WRONG.
Council Member Kogerman did not call for the City Manager's "Resignation" and Mayor Carruth neglected to the include the important words ("In the future") in her rendition of Council Member Kogerman's statement.
The exact quote from Council Member Kogerman is: "The point of all this is to make perfectly clear that unless the council majority changes the procedure neither Mr. Channing nor any council member other than it's author has the right or authority to arbitrarily pull and item submitted by any one council member unless it is simply to engage in an informational discussion with the author. In the future to remove an agenda item will not be tolerated and should anyone attempt to do so, I will personally recommend that the individual be censured or terminated."
At the Oct. 23, 2012 Laguna Hills City Council Meeting Council Member Songstad also reminded us of the reason for the failure of the negotiations with the City Manager stating that - unless you have 2 willing parties to negotiate the terms of a contract it is a waste of time. Songstad continued that "... it was a waste of money then and it would be a waste of money now." Laguna Hills Watch Dog
Bill Hunt is Missing In Action. He skipped "job interviews" and an offer to meet with the editorial board of the OC Register. Not to mention an appearance he skipped with Laguna Woods Republicans and the local Laguna Hills Watch Dog on Aug. 13, 2012. In fact, the only interview anyone can find is one with OC Politics Blog, in which he states the Laguna Hills City Manager's compensation is fair and well-deserved, and is a political issue not a fiscal issue. http://ocpolitical.com/tag/bill-hunt/ (A much-different pronouncement from one he previously gave at a recent Tea Party forum when he feigned disapproval of the city management's outrageous compensation.) He has been to only 2 or 3 City Council meetings, one immediately after he announced he was running for Laguna Hills City Council. (How ironic that in Hunt's latest campaign mailer, Craig Scott apologist Susie Caskey claims Hunt has been closely following events in Laguna Hills!)
Are Hunt's fans supporting the conservative Bill Hunt or the big spender Bill Hunt; the anti-corruption Bill Hunt or the Bill Hunt who notoriously let Greg Haidl and a drunk-driving supporter go free while a sheriff in San Clemente http://www.fullertonsfuture.org/2010/bill-hunt-on-the-haidl-incident/; the law-and-order Bill Hunt or the private investigator who supports gang bangers in court http://www.occcws.com/?p=925 ; or the illustrator www.illustrationbyhunt.com who specializes in racial and sexual stereotypes and BF of disgraceful racist Barbara Coe? http://blogs.ocweekly.com/navelgazing/2012/08/bill_hunt_must_renounce_joe_ar.php No wonder Bill Hunt is MIA - even he doesn't know who he is. Laguna Hills voters, beware
I love that Melody Carruth is wrong about Kogerman, wrong about Songstad and still wants to criticize Mauthur. Sounds like she sees and hears only what she wants to see and hear? What has happened to her?
Before you consider voting for Bill Hunt be sure to Check out this page from the "OC Freedom Fund" 455 Capitol Mall, Suite 600, Sacramento, CA 95814 They feel VERY STRONGLY and this organization is NOT for Bill Hunt. The web site is: www.therealbillhunt.com
This is what I found on the internet for the OC Freedom Fund:
OpenSectrets.org - See who's Giving and who's Getting
http://www.opensecrets.org/527s/527cmtedetail.php?ein=451170298
"Law Offices of Michael Schroeder":
http://www.opensecrets.org/527s/527cmtedetail_contribs.php?ein=451170298&cycle=2012
Bill Hunt and Michael Schroeder:
Why Michael Schroeder hates Bill Hunt
http://www.fullertonsfuture.org/2010/hunt-helps-defend-innocent-latino-while-the-union-plays-politics/
More about Bill Hunt and this same issue in the OC Register
http://totalbuzz.ocregister.com/2010/05/24/santa-ana-police-retract-support-of-sheriffs-candidate-bill-hunt/35467/
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