Just because it’s always been done is not a valid reason to keep doing it.
I am referring to the proposed funding in the amount of $10,000 by the Shreveport City Council to Rho Omega and Friends which present the Good Times Roll Festival.
The resolution for approval does not have an accompanying Cooperative Endeavor Agreement (CEA). Thus, there is NO prior knowledge of how these funds are to be spent.
The same applies to the proposed appropriations to Best 13 ($15,000) and Martin Luther King Neighborhood Association ($15,000).
The City of Shreveport does not fund Mudbug Madness and other festivals held at festival plaza. The arguments of economic development, historic value, etc. apply to Mudbug as well as Good Times.
And the public has no real idea what the funding for Rho Omega, Best 13, and the MLK Neighborhood Association is really for--or how much money these organizations pay their directors etc.
This funding proposal is bad government, pure and simple. The fact that these are African American groups primarily serving African Americans is no excuse for sugarcoating the matter. And just because a majority of the council is African American does not make this
"right".
The Council should expect unsupported, undocumented funding requests from the various festivals conducted at Festival Plaza and other civic groups including Mardi Gras Krewes. The Caddo Commission doles out big bucks to non-governmental organizations (NGOs) only after completion of detailed disclosures and funding is monitored.
John came to Shreveport in January of 1977 when he was transferred to Barksdale AFB.
He’s been active in Shreveport politics since deciding to make Shreveport his home.
John practiced law for 40 years and he now monitors local politics. He regularly attends Shreveport City Council and Caddo Parish Commission meetings.
John is published weekly in The Inquisitor, bi-monthly in The Forum News, and frequently in the Shreveport Times.
He enjoys addressing civic groups on local government issues and elections.