To the Forum: After two Federal courts affirmed Hawai’i’s OHA voting system, the Supreme Court ruled otherwise. The 1979 Con-Con was well intended: It set up a popular and reasonable system to address important Hawaiian issues that have suffered long-standing
To the Forum:
After two Federal
courts affirmed Hawai’i’s OHA voting system, the Supreme Court ruled otherwise.
The 1979 Con-Con was well intended: It set up a popular and reasonable system
to address important Hawaiian issues that have suffered long-standing neglect
by our State and Federal governments.
While the voting method of creating
the OHA board is now considered flawed, the whole intention, spirit and purpose
of OHA remains. Hawai’i’s leadership needs to respect and honor that.
It is
unfortunate that the already too powerful Executive has the power to appoint
our Attorney General. He has overtly advocated further concentration of power
through a personally appointed school board and now, the OHA board.
The
immediate and hasty call by the Executive to dispel the current OHA Board in
favor of his personally appointed board casts dubious light on his intentions
regarding his personal power and his intentions for Hawai’i’s people. Casting
out the OHA board takes with it the purpose, spirit and intentions of the last
elections.
The Executive has signaled with his haste that he has, for some
time, preferred a personally appointed OHA board. This has unnecessarily put in
question the quality of the defense of Rice vs. Cayetano, casting yet another
poor light on the structure of our government systems.
The heart of our
community embraces Democracy. Leave the elected OHA board intact, Hopefully,
the Hawaiian community itself will come up with the best solution to the
Supreme Court decision. Let’s give them a chance.
Representative Chris
Halford
11th District.
