I’m dumbfounded, disgusted and disappointed.

The City Council Committee on Public Safety and Economic Development, chaired by Carol Fukunaga, proved once again why so many are disenchanted with “politics as usual” in Hawaii.

The saddest part of what happened Tuesday was that our youth came to testify and saw our city government “in action.”

Or maybe it was the best thing that could have happened!

Today, Chair Fukunaga and her committee took the easy way out and “deferred” the hotel condo conversion bill once again, thus ignoring nearly 6,000 constituents, 27 state legislators, 69 small businesses, numerous community groups and a neighborhood board who all publicly supported Bill 16.

Is this what our youth have to look forward to as they come of age and look to engage in our political system?

An unresponsive City Council? As a community, we need to stay engage this political season to ensure our interests are met today and that they are not “deferred” to the next generation.

About the author: Joli Tokusato born and raised in Hawaii and is currently employed as a guest service agent at the Ilikai Hotel and Suites.


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