UPDATE: AKAKU, CH 55 SUNDAY 7/24/16

Tuesday (7/19/16) offered no surprises by either group of candidates

For as long as many at KCA can recall, this was our first membership meeting where members did no ask questions orally, but listened to answers to the questions that had submitted in writing prior to the meeting, with interesting results. Some topics which board and committees felt were very important to our community were not addressed by a single question (e.g., homelessness, crime, education). As this concern was raised by one of the participants, at close of the meeting, we explained the process which dictated the questions. Beyond that, we received overwhelming approval of our process, so we expect to follow a similar path at next forum on OCT 18 for the general election.

We thank Akaku, Maui Community Media for being there to record and schedule for future viewing, www.akaku.org . So if you were not among the nearly 200 guys packed in for SRO event, or if you were & want to verify something, you know where to go view the video.

The six candidates (two S Maui Dems for District 11 house and all four S Maui residence County Council) offered comments and answered a wide variety of questions.

We did perceive a bit of though on a question of term limits (like do KCA Officers have term limits? That is for another day.)

One observation at our forum, as well as at others we attended, is sadly there seems to be participation by the majority who have already decided on their selection, & lesser number who come to listen & be informed to then decide for whom they should vote. We strive to bring more residents into the fold of participation and encourage you to do the same. Apathy is the cancer that eats away at good government. Get involved and informed. If you are, get your ohana up to speed too.

Consider attending other forums for various candidates or other topics revealed by these same guys. The Young Democrats have one in Wailuku on Sunday (24^th) at 4:00 PM for three W Council seat, a VERY important race; The Farmers Union Wednesday (27^th) at Baldwin H. S. for a large segment of County Council candidates, including this quartet, where they will be asked completely different questions.

Insure you are prepared by election day, 8/13 or before if you plan to vote sooner via early voting or absentee.