The Town Crier

Przech Charges Charter
Tenure Takes Away Rights
Of Voters

Renewing his attack on a proposed council-manager form of government for Newington, Walter Przech said today that while the emphasis by nonpartisan groups is continually on registering and voting for the party of one's choice, the advocates of council-manager government are virtually abandoning their prerogatives.

"Only by elective methods, where the voter has the power to remove its elective officials, do the people keep control of the government. Placing a city manager in power, with the tenure under which most of them operate and without which you could not get one to take the job, actually throws away the right of the voter to determine how his city shall be run", Mr. Przech said.

"Perhaps, as was the case in Hartford, where a city becomes enmeshed in domination by one party, there is some excuse for turning to a city manager system. This certainly does not apply in Newington where there is a clear division of the two parties. Shortly after the Citizens Charter Committee was successful in electing its candidates in a reform movement in Hartford, the interest of the average voter started to diminish. It has sunk so low that now a 30 per cent turnout to elect a council is about the best you can expect. I charge that this is not responsible government, nor is it good government', Przech said.

The greatest single fault of a council-manager form of government, according to Przech, is that it fails to produce political leadership on which responsibility for city government can be pinned. He said that after his first public criticism of the proposed change in the charter, he was encouraged by the support he had received from people who had not previously expressed themselves on the subject.

Przech said advocates of council-manager form of government were not citing the true story when they point to Cincinatti as the best example of the success of that system.

"The facts show that the reason that the manager plan has worked so well in Cincinatti is the Charter Party which backs it has become a well-organized political party and is much stronger than either the Republicans or the Democrats Przech noted.

To compare Newington with Cincinatti, Milwaukee and other cities of large population is ridiculous Przech said. "It would be better to compare our community with that in our own state. I mean Plainville where they recently placed a city manager in control. The next tax rate in Plainville was five mills higher than the previous rate".

Przech said that experience has shown time and again that a strong mayor-council form of government has demonstrated its value in a medium-sized community, "People interested in a good government can demand good government if they have the power to change the administration on election day. Under a city manager, it hardly makes any difference which party is nominally in control. The manager and his are still in control of the city government". Przech said that as a Newington citizen with a vested interest in the welfare of his community he is deeply concerned with the "apathy" of the people which sets in shortly after a council-manager government is given control of the administration of civic affairs.