Public Officials and Their Personal Lives
During recent local and national political campaigns, the personal lives of our
potential public officials have often been a hot topic in the media. Although many
of us want to focus on the important issues such as "what can our politician do
for us as American citizens" or in this case "Franklin County residents", that is
not always the case.
In a recent poll by issued by www.thefranklintimes.com, there was a huge
response to the question "Should County Commissioner Sydney Dunston's recent
child support case and previous report of a domestic violence call involving his
estranged wife have bearing on his re-election bid?" The results as of
September 26, 2008 were as follows:
No. Not at all. 12.5%
Yes. He should still be re-elected. 1.8%
Yes. He should not be re-elected. 38.1%
He should resign immediately. 47.6%
It's quite obvious by these results, that a public official's personal life does in fact
determine the way we vote. But should it? Is it fair to for this man's career to suffer
because his personal life is in shambles? What if you were evaluated by your
personal life on your job instead of by your job performance?
If the question would have included his accomplishments as commissioner, would
the majority of voters say Sidney Dunston should resign immediately? What if it
portrayed his many contributions to the community? In addition to serving as the
chairperson to the Franklin County Board of Commissioners, Sidney Dunston is
founder and Pastor of God's Vision Missionary Baptist Church, chairperson of Legal
Redress and Scholarship Committee of the Franklin County NAACP, vice chairman
of the Franklin County Board of Health, vice chairman of the Franklin County Democratic
Party, member of the School Improvement Committee of Terrell Lane Middle School,
and the list could go on. Would you still say he should resign immediately?
Would if it included that Dunston and his wife were married for 27 years prior to the
incidents listed above? Don't misunderstand me, however. I am not condoning any
man - public official or otherwise - that does not support his children or would put his
hands on a woman in an act of violence. Apparently, Dunston is having some issues. It is
a fact that his wife has chosen to receive assistance from CSE (Child Support Enforcement)
in obtaining child support from him. It is also a fact that his wife is on record for calling 911
to report domestic violence on Dunston. Is that enough information to go on to request that
he resign immediately from his position as a leader of our community?
Overall, the question that remains is will his personal issues prevent him from continuing to
be a good leader in our community? As county residents, our concern should be that the people
we vote into office are and continue to be the people that make the best decisions for our county.
Published by J.B. Hicks
Freelance Media Professional View profile
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- The personal lives of our potential public officials have often been a hot topic in the media.
- Although many of us want to focus on the important issues ...
- Will Dunston's personal issues prevent him from continuing to be a good leader in our community?
1 Comments
Post a CommentI think a person in politics is entrusted with a lot of power, and honesty and integrity have a lot to do with how that is done. If a man will beat his wife, will he badger others to get his way or show fits of rage or belittle those over whom he has power? If a woman will have an affair, will she also be unfaithful to the promise about how she will uphold the office. It matters to me. Let's say a husband has an affair and his wife wants a divorce. He says, but dear, it did change how I operated at home. I still paid the bills, had sex with you, went to the ball games. What does it matter what I do in private? Wasn't I doing a good job at home?