Why was Macedonia Councilman Kevin Bilke censured by Macedonia City Council members in the Thursday, September 26th regular Macedonia City Council meeting?
- The censure motion happened at the end of the meeting without normal public notice that a censure action or an explanation to Macedonia voters of what justified their action. The vote was taken as an emergency measure.
- The current Council members apparently think Macedonia voters don’t count in their deliberations. Obviously incumbent Council members think voters don’t need to know why a Council member that they elected to represent them was:
- prohibited from attending the next regular Council meeting,
- stripped of his important Committee chairmanships and Council member seniority,
- and was docked a month’s pay
- Mr. Bilke indicated that Council was annoyed with his ego and it was a wakeup call. The possibility that Mr. Bilke’s conduct was annoying cannot be ruled out but it is not an explanation. It does not relieve the incumbent Council of their responsibility to be transparent and straightforward about public actions they take, not secretive.
- The timing of this secretive action by the current Council could be advantageous for Macedonia voters when they decide who will represent them in the next four years. Which candidates will respect voters and their right to know the facts behind Council actions?
Sylvia Hanneken
