Today more than ever before there is a lack of trust between the people and those who conduct the people’s business. While a lot of attention goes to politicians in Lansing and Washington D.C., most Americans are impacted on a day-to-day basis much more by local politicians than national ones. One way to keep our local elected officials in check is to elect members of varying party affiliations. When one party dominates and controls power absolutely that is when corruption and misappropriation of funds is most likely to occur.
Embezzlement is a crime which occurs when one has access combined with a lack of oversight. Embezzlement is the ultimate misappropriation of taxpayer funds. In order to best ensure good stewardship of funds Emmet County needs oversight built into every level of its operations that has access to sensitive information or valuable assets. This kind of objective oversight starts at the top which is why all public meetings should be open to the public and have their audio or visual files made available online without requiring any individual’s request since many people cannot make every county board of commissioner meeting.
This service proactively keeps all members of the public well informed and prevents misinformation from being able to spread. When the general public is aware that decisions being made on their behalf are done with public input trust can grow between those who are elected and those who elect. And, if you are still not satisfied with your elected officials beyond a simple disagreement then you are encouraged to take part in the process whether it be the election process or running for public office. This democracy does not operate without your participation.