Leflore County supervisor candidate Solomon Osborne said during a debate Tuesday that the last few presidents at Mississippi Valley State University have been “idiots.”
Osborne had been asked a question about a lack of communication between the Itta Bena university and area businesses.
The Democrat from District 4 responded that some at the university sit in their ivory towers and have an elitist attitude.
“You have to have people at Valley State who are willing to work with the community,” Osborne said. “The last few presidents that they’ve hired have been, you know, idiots really, and people who really don’t seem to want to relate to the community.”
A Valley spokesperson declined to comment about Osborne’s remarks.
Osborne debated Eric Mitchell, an independent candidate for District 4 supervisor, Tuesday at the Leflore County Civic Center in an event sponsored by the Greenwood Community League.
Mitchell said all Greenwood-area stores need to stock MVSU apparel, which he said is done in other Mississippi college towns.
The candidates will face off in the Nov. 8 general election along with incumbent Wayne Self, an independent who serves as the board’s president. Self was at the Civic Center for the Fannie Lou Hamer Cancer Foundation’s lockup, which was held at the same time, but didn’t attend the debate.
Two other supervisors participated: District 2 incumbent Robert Moore, a Democrat, and District 5 independent Ted Barrett.
Osborne and Mitchell went first.
After four-minute opening statements, moderator Emmitt Riley III asked questions, which each candidate had three minutes to answer.
The audience could submit questions in a box, but only one person did so, asking about the large trucks that the county provides supervisors. Moore has a county car; District 1 Supervisor Phil Wolfe does not use a county vehicle.
Mitchell said he understands the concerns but said he assumes the county does it to get supervisors from point A to point B. Osborne said a lot of agencies provide transportation for employees.
Mitchell, a computer technician for the Leflore County School District and owner of the Capricorn Internet Cafe in Itta Bena, focused his comments on embracing education, saying that’s necessary for retaining young people and attracting jobs.
“We have jobs here in Leflore County, but you can have people come from Carroll County to work and go back home. That is money leaving this county that should be retained,” Mitchell said.
Osborne, an attorney and former judge, said a problematic area for Leflore County and Mississippi is a lack of economic empowerment for black and poor people.
“We’ve concentrated on civil rights and getting the ability to go into any restaurants, but a lot of times we don’t have money to go in,” he said.
Riley asked about County Administrator Sam Abraham asserting authority on the board.
“When you work with supervisors and they’re all in accord, Sam Abraham’s power is then limited,” Mitchell said. “Once you have supervisors that are swaying one way already with their mind made up, that’s when Sam Abraham’s power becomes greater.”
Osborne said, “Abraham works for the board; they don’t work for him. Now some of the supervisors seem to be confused and think they work for him, but I’m not confused; I know who works for who.”
Abraham is appointed by the board as county administrator but elected as chancery clerk.
Moore and Barrett debated next, although they’re in different districts.
Barrett, a teacher, drew some laughs from the audience with his short responses.
Moore, who’s retired from Valley, spoke passionately about housing.
“If you’re living in houses like what we live in in South Greenwood, it chokes me up to just think about that. People living in shotgun houses in 2011 where you can actually stand in the house and see the ground or see the sky. ... The least of us shouldn’t have to live this way,” he said. “Like I say, folks, it’s just a damn shame, and we’ve got to have officials that understand the plight that our people are in.”
He said his proudest achievement during his 22-year tenure has been the building of 15 new homes for elderly citizens.
He said Greenwood Utilities is making millions of dollars “heating those sisters’ houses with no insulation. The more that folks try to heat them, the more money Greenwood Utilities makes.”
He said that the utility has been taking out of the community and that it’s time for it to give back.
Moore said that Greenwood Utilities pays $250,000 annually to the city and that the city spent the money to buy a building “that fell in on them,” referring to the Russell Building downtown, which the city plans to renovate.
He said the city should have provided the money to five churches that have committed to rehabilitate homes.
Moore also said the county needs to spend more with black-owned businesses. He said he wants to repave Chapman subdivision, renew the county’s home-building project and open a medical mall at the former site of the county livestock barns on Carrollton Avenue and Bowie Lane.
He said he’s proud of Viking Range Corp.’s presence in Greenwood and said he’s gone to Washington to lobby for grants for the appliance maker since it first got off the ground.
On Abraham, Moore said, “You have to be very careful when the tail starts wagging the dog. Not saying that Sam Abraham don’t have some good ideas and don’t do good work at times, but then there are times that I think he oversteps his bounds, but he don’t overstep any further than he’s allowed to.”
Following the debates, Marquii Washington of the Community League responded to a lack of participation from candidates.
“I find it strange that only one of our incumbents is here tonight,” he said. “We’re recognizing that voters count; signs don’t. We’re going to continue to let these people put signs (up) because they have a big bankroll to pay for enough signs to go up across our county. We’ve got to hold these people accountable for their actions.”
Incumbent District 3 Supervisor Preston Ratliff did attend the event but did not speak. Ratliff is not currently on the ballot after a judge named Anjuan Brown the District 3 Democratic nominee, but an upcoming trial could result in Ratliff being placed on the ballot or a new election ordered.
The league will host another debate next Tuesday between candidates for sheriff, circuit clerk and superintendent of education.
• Contact Charlie Smith at csmith@gwcommonwealth.com.
Solomon Osborne and Eric Mitchell, candidates for District 4 supervisor in Leflore County, debated Tuesday, Oct. 4, 2011, at the Leflore County Civic Center. Osborne is the first speaker heard in the clip.These are highlights from a debate District 2 Leflore County Supervisor Robert Moore participated in on Tuesday, Oct. 4, 2011, at the Leflore County Civic Center.
