OPINION: Conduct affairs of your city with openness
Pastor Sammy Taylor’s words of guidance for Russellville’s incoming municipal administration should be the guiding principles of every individual elected to office.
The Mountain View Baptist Church pastor took the opportunity during Sunday’s swearing in ceremony to talk about integrity and accountability for those in public service.
He urged Russellville’s mayor and city council members to lead with humility, serve all residents equally, face challenges with courage, and hold themselves accountable.
“Your authority comes from the people,” Taylor told the municipal leaders. “The trust the community places in you is not a reward — it’s a responsibility.”
Lastly, he reminded city officials that public office carries an obligation to be transparent in all their actions, and ethical in their decision making.
“Conduct the affairs of the city with honesty, openness and fairness,” Taylor said. “When you act, ask what is right, not what is easy or politically expedient.”
His words were a powerful testament to characteristics that are so often missing at all levels of politics.
How important are integrity and transparency for public officials? Very important.
Transparency allows citizens to hold officials accountable and participate more effectively in their government, while integrity ensures that decisions are made in the public’s best interest, which is foundational for a healthy democracy.
The recent municipal elections across northwest Alabama perhaps signaled a dose of voter discontent with politics as usual.
New mayors were elected in Florence, Muscle Shoals, Sheffield, Tuscumbia, Red Bay, Phil Campbell, Lexington, Killen, Rogersville, and most city or town councils saw at least one new official elected.
Some of them have acknowledged the need for more transparency in local government.
Billy Hudson of Muscle Shoals is a good example. Hudson said people in politics sometimes forget who put them there.
“We work for the people of the city,” he said. “They’re the ones who pay our salary.”
Hudson has promised his door will always open to everybody — “employees and citizens, everybody.”
We urge all our newly elected city officials to “conduct the affairs of the city with honesty, openness and fairness.” That can be accomplished if they remember the following:
Government should be transparent, and information should always be available to the public.
Transparency promotes accountability and provides information for citizens about what their city governments are doing.
Government should be participatory.
Public engagement enhances a city government’s effectiveness and improves the quality of its decisions. City leaders should always solicit public input on how they can increase and improve opportunities for public participation in government.
Government should be collaborative.
Collaboration actively engages the public in the work of their city governments. Municipal officials must always solicit public feedback to assess and improve their dealings with citizens.
Be responsive to constituents.
Return phone calls and emails promptly. Be willing to listen to what your constituents have to say about issues. Be open to constructive criticism. If you vote for something, have the conviction to admit so and explain why you did so. Hold an open public meeting with your constituents at least once a quarter.
