Council ignored GMO testimony

Thank you for publishing Councilman Tom Berg’s letter ("Take a stand on PLDC, GMO labels," Star-Advertiser, Letters, Nov. 27).

I rushed down to City Hall to testify, but I needn’t have worried because scores of individuals far more qualified and passionate than I showed up in support of Berg’s proposal to reinsert recommendations to label GMOs (genetically modified organisms) and dissolve the Public Land Development Corp., items that had been surreptitiously removed from the counties’ joint resolution to the 2013 Legislature.Testimony went on for hours without any speaker against labeling GMOs, much less preserving PLDC.

So it was like a slap in the face to hear that the proposal did not pass. Council Chairman Ernest Martin and members Ikaika Anderson, Stanley Chang, Nestor Garcia and Joey Manahan owe the public an explanation. Who are they protecting when they refuse to allow the mere mention of "label GMOs" in a resolution?

Wynnie Hee
Mililani

OHA purchase is mysterious

When the state Office of Hawaiian Affairs Board of Trustees authorized the purchase of the Gentry Pacific Design Center this past summer for $21.37 million, I was one of several trustees with serious concerns about the many unknowns regarding the property.

As I feared, the costs associated with the property have skyrocketed. On Nov. 1, the trustees authorized nearly $7 million in expenditures, including up to $663,000 in costs relating to "Tenant Improvement Allowances," and up to $6.09 million in design and construction and non-OHA tenant relocation costs.

OHA still has to pay for repairs totaling an estimated $404,000, mainly to repaint the building and to replace the roofing membrane.

If you are interested in why OHA would suddenly spend $28.12 million to purchase, renovate and move into an old building that was not for sale, please call or write to OHA Trustee Oswald Stender.

Rowena M. Akana
Trustee-at-large, Office of Hawaiian Affairs

Elections chief getting free pass?

There seems to be reluctance in Hawaii to hold accountable officials who are incompetent or in jobs beyond their capability.

Scott Nago, the chief elections officer, was not held accountable for allowing the ballot shortage on Oahu, which caused long lines and voter frustration in the recent election. How many voters were deprived of their right to vote by Nago’s miscalculation?

Hawaii has had consistently low voter turnout in past elections and this fiasco will add to voter apathy. The only forceful comments on this mess were from state Sen. Sam Slom, who urged strong remedial action and replacement of leadership.

Whatever happened to the initiative of the Elections Commission, which is content to pass the buck to a subcommittee? The state attorney general will also conduct an investigation. Will these investigations be another whitewash, like the University of Hawaii’s Wonder Blunder?

Tony Locascio
Waikiki

FEMA workers deserve kudos

Our hearts go out to the victims of Hurricane Sandy. But whether it’s Sandy or another hurricane, tornado or tsunami, let’s not forget the men and women who work for the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).

These folks must leave their families for many weeks at a time towork with those affected and process their claims. It’s very stressful for the families of the FEMA workers as they try to carry on each time a disaster strikes, waitingso many days until their loved ones are finally able to return home.

Lee Takagi
McCully