COMMUNITY ACTION AGENCY BOARD HEARS "DIPLOMATIC" SLAM

Gary Hartfield, new executive director of the embattled Polk County Opportunity Council, told board members Tuesday that some of them became "fans" of his predecessor, and that their blind loyalty hurt the community action agency over time.

Hartfield replaced Carolyn Speed, who was forced to resign in November as the result of a series of issues climaxing in a one year probation from the Florida Department of Community Affairs and calls for the agency to be disbanded.

Members of the board promised to do better in the future, admitting they should have treated Speed and their oversight of her differently. One member, Booker Young, told the Lakeland Ledger that "We were a little too close, a little too friendly" with the previous executive director. "It won't happen again."

While one may "live and learn", the credibility of PCOC will never be restored fully until those members of the board which sat back on their hands --- especially Board Chairman Ozell Wilson --- do the right thing and resign immediately. This is more than Ms. Speed's taking a free trip for signing a contract to purchase a copier. These board members chose to do nothing while Speed and her staff brought the agency to the brink of extinction due to sloppy bookkeeping...and only God above knows what else.

The Polk County Opportunity Council does a lot of great work for the underpriviliged of our area. It provides Head Start classes throughout Polk County, as well as a home weatherization and other programmes. There are a lot of wonderful people who work there. They, the organization's clients, and the people of this area deserve better leadership than that which has come from PCOC's Bartow office.