Ward 8 Council Candidate Jacque Patterson: "What are you looking for in your next Ward 8 Councilmember?"
Today's guest post is written by Ward 8 Council Candidate Jacque Patterson, Sr. To learn more about Jacque visit his campaign website. If you are so inspired you can make a much needed donation to his campaign HERE. You don't have to be a democrat or Ward 8 resident to be a Ward 8 supporter.
Today's Blogger: Jacque Patterson |
Given the opportunity to be a guest blogger on Congress
Heights on the Rise grants me a rare opportunity to turn the table from being
the interviewee as a candidate for public office to becoming an interviewer of
the residents of Ward 8. And I think
I’ll be a pretty easy interviewer, as I only have one question for Ward 8
Democratic voters, “What are you looking for in your next Ward 8 Councilmember?”
I thought about that one question long and hard because it’s
the same question I asked myself before I decided to run for the Ward 8 Council
seat in the April 3rd Primary
Election. Because at the end of the day,
I’m not only a candidate, I’m a resident, a neighbor and a voter in the Ward we
share. My future is tied to your future.
When I look at it from the perspective of being part of
something bigger than being an individual candidate, I see the community first
and my candidacy second.
When I think about answering the question I’m asking you,
since I am part of your community too, I start to answer it by saying I want a
candidate who has shown they possess the professional skills to be an effective
councilmember. We all know Ward 8 has
been fed more rhetoric than results for years now. I would vote for a candidate who has a
similar public service record as my own, which includes bringing the KIPP
Public Charter School Campus to the Hillsdale neighborhood, the Higher
Achievement After-School program to Anacostia, the experience of playing a role
in every affordable housing development project currently under construction in
our Ward, and has actually helped residents who are suffering under the current
economic recession by saving their homes from foreclosure. A candidate without a list of accomplishments
couldn’t win my vote.
I’d like my next councilmember to show that they could bring
consensus amongst the various views and visions of the Ward. Lord knows, if there is one thing we do well
as a community, it’s disagree on just about everything. But if a candidate hasn’t proven by holding
leadership positions in the past that they can execute a vision, how are they
going to be able to do it as a councilmember?
If a candidate hasn’t been effective in running their respective
Advisory Neighborhood Commission or winning a leadership position, is he/she realistically
ready to tangle with seasoned elected councilmembers currently exploiting the
ineffectiveness of our current councilmember? To get my vote, I want you to have not only
been an ANC, I would want you to have been as productive as I was as chair of
ANC 8B. During my tenure, we brought the Andrews Federal Credit Union to the
corner of Alabama and Stanton Road SE; we worked hand in glove with the developers
of the Giant/IHOP Development and THEARC facility. Instead of spending money on cell phones and
other personal items, we gave out more grants to worthy non-profits than has
been given in the Ward by any other ANC.
It’s easy to show up, hype up residents concerned about a community
issue through grandstanding public relations tactics, but how are you going to change
the situation? Answer that question
first, before I cast a ballot for you.
I’d like my next councilmember to understand how crafting public
policy works. I doubt that any of us
would allow a doctor to operate on us if that doctor had not graduated from medical
school. So why expect less of a
councilmember, who is equally tasked with life or death decisions when it comes
to the future of our Ward, as they attempt to properly perform oversight of major
government operations. How underserved
have we been in the past by candidates and elected officials who, although well
intended and passionate about community concerns, were ineffective? I’d expect my next councilmember to have a
degree in public administration, possibly be a certified public manager and
having attended a Senior Executives in Local and State Government program at
JFK School of Government at Harvard would set that candidate head and shoulders
above candidates who lack professional training in public service. Those are exactly the educational programs I
took in preparation for a career in public service. I knew public service was not something I could
one day wake up with an epiphany and desire to be an elected official, but
something I’d have to train for with the same seriousness of a person wanting
to become a surgeon.
And is it asking too much for a candidate to conduct
him/herself in a manner that improves the image of Ward 8. Not saying
the candidate has to be perfect, but could they include in their formal
responsibilities of Councilmember, the unspoken expectation of role model to what we’d want our children to
aspire to be. Ethical behavior, service before self, integrity, moral
character. I’d like the candidate to at
least strive to embody these personal characteristics, even as I acknowledge in
my own efforts as a husband, father and civic advocate, I’ve made mistakes.
Lastly, but most importantly, as a resident of Ward 8, I’m
looking for a candidate with a plan to transform the quality of life in our
Ward. While there is no way any one plan
could encompass everything that ever yone wants, it does have to touch on some
of the most pressing issues confronting our communities. Each of the other candidates are great people
in their own right. I take nothing away
from their desire to serve Ward 8, but I have to be honest as a voter and question
their readiness to serve in the highest elected office of our Ward. I found it very difficult to see in any one
candidate, the qualities I listed above.
That’s why I asked the very same question I asked you at the top of the
blog, of myself, “What are you looking for in your next Ward 8 Councilmember?” And being unable to confidently cast a vote
for the incumbent or the other candidates, decided to run for the office
myself. Our community concerns are too
important to continue on the same course or to allow unqualified candidates to
win office.
As I change back from being a blogger to a candidate, I’d
like to leave you with my “8for8” platform.
Patterson “8for8” Platform
1. Lowering Unemployment 5.
Strengthening Families
2. Generating Economic Development 6. Addressing Seniors/Elders
Concerns
3. Advocating for Education Reform 7. Improving Public
Transportation
4. Alleviating Public
Safety Concerns 8.
Developing Affordable Housing
Since the Advoc8te has been more than accommodating with
space, I won’t go into each one here, but will ask you to go to my web site www.pattersonforward8.com to read
more about the details to change the way of life in Ward 8. Thank you for opportunity to use this venue
to serve our Ward!
JACQUE PATTERSON
Go HERE to learn about Jacque!
Twitter: @jacque4dc
Facebook: Jacque Patterson for Ward 8 City Council
Email: jacquedpatterson@gmail.com
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