PRESS RELEASE: Statement by Jacque Patterson, Ward 8 Democrats President on Pending Vote of Removal
Contact: Jacque D. Patterson
202 834-2553
STATEMENT By Ward 8 Democrats President On Pending Vote of Removal
April 12, 2010
On February 28, 2010, I was asked to attend an emergency executive committee meeting orchestrated to force my resignation. On April 17, 2010, I will have the opportunity to stand before the residents who voted me president of the Ward Eight Democrats to testify why I did not bend to the request for my resignation and state my commitment to serve the entire 2 year term I was elected to on September 19, 2009.
During the interim time between the request for resignation and the pending vote, Ward 8 has suffered enormously. A drive-by shooting in Washington Highland left four Ward 8 youth dead, and 5 injured; our Councilmember was censured by his colleagues and stripped of his committee chairmanship and committee assignment to the influential Finance and Revenue committee; and unemployment has risen to 28.5%. Yet, due to the infighting of the executive committee, the Ward Eight Democrats has been terminally ineffective in leading our community to address these and other pressing issues.
The charges against me are that committee chairs and precinct captains were not designated in a timely manner as stated by the Ward Eight Democrats By-Laws. These complaints is not new to our organization, but the request for the president’s resignation is unprecedented as a penalty. The prior administration was in violation of a couple of these same infractions at various times during the two year term, with no call for resignation. Even after attempts to rectify these and other concerns of the executive committee members who filed the charges, and the admittance by the 1st Vice President that the matter should have been handled differently, it became apparent that my resignation was the only conclusion that would satisfy the personal agendas of a few executive committee members.
It is unfortunate that we must ask the registered Democrats of Ward 8 and the DC Democratic State Committee to help settle concerns that could have been resolved within the executive committee. It does nothing to achieve the goals and mission of the Ward Eight Democrats. My intent upon running for the presidency of the Ward Eight Democrats was to bridge difference among registered Democrats in Ward 8 so that we as a unified community could better hold elected public officials accountable to improving the quality of life in our Ward. As president of the Ward Eight Democrats, I apologize that the leaders of the organization charged with carrying out that mission have been unsuccessful in setting the example in this case.
Over the last couple of months, I have been consumed with trying to reconcile differences with individual executive committee members and searching for what was the best action that I could take for the residents of our Ward? Should I resign or continue to fight to build a more inclusive organization. I decided to allow the residents to ultimately make the decision of whom and how they wanted this organization to operate. I ask that registered Democratic voters of Ward 8 attend the Ward Eight Democrats General Body Meeting, scheduled for April 17, 2010, noon-2pm, at Matthew Memorial Baptist Church, 2616 Martin Luther King, Jr. Ave. SE to vote on the future of not only the Ward Eight Democrats, but the future of our great Ward 8.
Democratically,
Jacque D. Patterson
President, Ward Eight Democrats, Inc.
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