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About Siletz news / (Siletz, OR) 199?-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 1, 2001)
CANDIDATES’ STATEMENTS My name is Clifford W. Case Sr., and I am asking you to vote me onto the Siletz Tribal Council this coming February. For those of you who do not know me, my tribal affiliation is through my grandmother, Ethel Logan. Her son, Clifford, was my father, and my mother was an enrolled Yakima from Washington state. Clifford W Case Sr I had the good fortune to be elected by you, my tribe, to Council better for our children. We need our in 1996. I also had the misfortune administration audited and put out to be recalled in 1998. Looking to the people in layman’s terms so back on my past tenure, I can we can understand what is truthfully say I was a good happening to our money. Nothing Councilperson and did my job well. changes! Why? I listened to my people and Think about it for a moment represented them to the very best please. Nothing is changing of my ability. because you the people are not Our tribe is based on a two- changing it. Every year the same party system, much like our United leadership is put back into power States government. The political and has been there for 16 years. job of each party is to represent When you cast your vote this year, themselves to the people as being n P' * n l / m .1 vote for a change. the best. Unfortunately, that often They say politicians should means pointing out the errors of the not make promises. We have been other party, and things get personal promised good things for years and very fast when doing so. That yet here we are stagnating while is politics! other tribes move upward and Since the recall, the present onward. Well, my people, I will Council continues to make all the make you a promise. I promise to same moves and mistakes that have you that if I am elected, I will plagued our tribe for years. Our faithfully work with my fellow clinic was at one time a big constituents for the betterment of moneymaker and now services are our people. We need to make being cut. Our casino is only a few changes now! We can only do this years old and has already been by voting to change the prevailing refinanced twice and renovations Tribal Council majority. It is time seem to be endless. Our cash flow to move forward. last year was around $53 million Thank you for your vote, I can but only $1.5 million came back to and will work for you to the best of the tribe. Where is the money my ability. going? Our programs are being cut C.W. Case Sr. and nothing is being done to develop our resources. Finally, the Salem property is being developed, but it has taken years. What I’m trying to say is it’s time for a change! We need some new and fresh decision-makers. All the decisions being made continue to pull us down. Our elders are in need of care and housing. We need an elder care facility. We need to subsidize our school here in Siletz to make it Pat Duncan POBox 16238 Portland, OR 97292-0238 503-257-6232 pduncan @ pacifier.com Dear Tribal Members: My previous service to the people of our tribe as a Tribal Council member is due to your support, and I am again asking for your support in the 2001 election. My record shows that I have listened to your concerns and have acted accordingly. I take pride in knowing every one of my decisions was based on what I believed to be in the best interest of our tribe as a whole. Tribal Council lack of accountability and disclosure, especially when it comes to the financial security of our tribe’s assets, is not acceptable. Tribal members have the right to know and determine how their money is being spent. There were a number of community meetings and opportunities for input into the Gaming Distribution Plan; yet there M/as no opportunity for the membership to vote on the final plan, which, in fact, virtually ignored the membership’s input. In reviewing the plan, it is clear to see that the Tribal Council, in one year, has used over five times as much money as used for the general welfare of the membership. And, how could the Tribal Council spend over $2,000,000 in 1999 while our members are being denied health care? How much has the Tribal Council spent in FY 2000 while our members are still being denied health care? Policies should be enacted to have budget hearings with full disclosure and approval by the membership of major tribal expenditures. 1 propose that the Tribal Council place restrictions on its spending if any tribal member is in jeopardy of being denied basic benefits, especially in health care and education. It has been reported that, in 1999, “the total cost of wages for Tribal Council members Pat Duncan was $81,217.16, or an average of $9,024.12 per Council member.” Yet, there is still over $1,900,000 unaccounted for that the Tribal Council spent in 1999. Was it used primarily for travel? When I served previously on the Tribal Council, we carefully reviewed all travel, cutting unnecessary trips and limiting Tribal Council representation to one or two to attend meetings considered to be important to our tribe. Over the last two years, the usual practice has been to allow the entire Tribal Council to travel to the same meetings, along with a number of staff. How can these junkets be justified when our people are doing without? Tribal members must ask permission to record Tribal Council meetings. This policy of secrecy must cease. Moreover, tapes should be available to the membership immediately after the meetings upon request. Non-verbatim minutes of Tribal Council meetings are sent out, upon request, quarterly. By the time the membership knows what is going on, it is old news, and the interpretation of discussion is at the whim of the secretary transcribing the meeting. I propose that the Tribal Council minutes be transcribed verbatim and available immediately upon approval. They could also be posted to the tribe’s Web site. (See Pat on page 10)
