By Betsy Finklea
During the committee reports at the Dillon County Council meeting on February 25th, Councilman Randy Goings made an impassionate speech stating that he did not want to go back to the Dillon County politics of the 1950s, 60s and 70s.
Goings stood up to make his remarks saying that he was trying to head off problems down the road. “I see it,” he said. “I felt it last month.” He then described an incident which happened with the council’s building committee.
Goings is chairman of the building committee. He said he had been to the new Judicial Center which is in the process of being completed five times since January with Winna Miller, a county employee who is helping to oversee the project. He said that each time they have spent an hour to an hour and a half.
Goings said County Council Chairman T.F. “Buzzy” Finklea, Jr. had appointed him as the chairman of the committee because he felt like he had the insight to do the job which he was doing to the best of his ability and that he had been around buildings and houses since 1965. Goings became a residential contractor in 1984. “I know a little something about buildings,” he said.
Then he talked about punch lists. He said a punch list is the list of items that need to be corrected before a building is completed. He said Miller had been doing these and had been doing a great job. He said they also have an architect who has a punch list. Goings said as chairman of the building committee that those are the only two lists that he recognizes.
Goings said someone had made an attempt to make inruns around the committee. He said he had been on council for two years and this was the first time that this had happened.
Goings said being around business for a long time that this was not the way to handle business. He said the committee is to report to council and council is to decide to accept or reject their recommendation or give input. “This is the only way it’s going to work,” said Goings.
He said they have people who do not respect the committee and who are doing their own thing. He said he did not know how this happened anyway. He said it was his understanding that councilmen shouldn’t have anything to say to an employee about doing any work or apply pressure to get them to do anything. He asked the attorney, Ken Dubose, if this was true, and he said yes.
Goings said County Administrator Clay Young could have ordered the new punch list which he hasn’t seen, didn’t see, and doesn’t want to see. “As far as I’m concerned, it’s trash,” said Goings.
He asked Mrs. Miller to bring him the punch list and a trash can.
“This thing has bother me,” he said, “bothered me to the core. I know where we headed if it doesn’t stop right now. I know we’re going back to the 50s, 60s and 70s of Dillon County politics…where a councilman can say bring me a load of dirt.” He said the state stepped in and changed that. (Editor’s Note: See the judge’s most recent order at the following link…https://www.dillonheraldonline.com/2010/06/16/judge-issues-order-from-dirt-hauling-hearing/)
He asked if they could imagine the chaos and confusion if each councilman went to the county workers and said do this and then another councilman came behind this one and said do that. That person would be confused. “We cannot go back to that,” Goings said.
Goings then held up the punch list and threw it in the trash can. He said only the chairman or a member of council could pull it out.
He told Chairman Finklea that if he pulled it out that he could forget about him being chairman of any committee because it wouldn’t do any good. He said there would be chaos.
He told Finklea he could take it out and use it, it was up to him.
Finklea said he was not taking it out.
Goings said he didn’t want him to.
Goings said that people were coming up showing him things that had been posted on Facebook®.
He said one thing he has was common sense and that you can’t run a county with every councilman going here and there and doing their own thing. “It won’t work,” he said.
He went back to the citizens showing him things on Facebook®. He said the county business all on Facebook®. He said that they as councilmen have to learn to keep some things off Facebook® especially when they are not true. He said if it’s true and they want to put it out, that’s good, but if it’s not true they shouldn’t put it on Facebook® because it causes problems for all councilmen.
He said as far as the punch list by Code Enforcement Officer Larry Jones. He does not think that Jones jumped in and did it himself. He said he did not think that Young ordered it if he has Mrs. Miller doing it unless pressure had been applied to him. Young said he wouldn’t need to.
Goings said they have to come together as a group and iron this stuff out.
Councilman Robbie Coward asked to say something and Goings said to let him finish.
“This thing was done wrong,” Goings said, who said he wanted someone to convince him it was right.
Coward said it was Young’s recommendation to get Larry Jones to go there.
Finklea thanked Goings for his report and said at the beginning of this year, he said they needed to work together and pull together as a council and that he thought that is what most of the council wanted to do.
“We’re going to do what’s right,” said Finklea, who said he agreed with Goings comments 100 percent.
Finklea then asked for other comments, but there were none.
