City Councilman Tom Berg has apologized for his argumentative actions at a Waipahu Neighborhood Board meeting last week that escalated to the point where police were called to maintain order.
After police arrived the meeting continued with no further incident, but the chairman of the neighborhood board said he does not accept the apology and has asked the Council chairman to speak with Berg and determine whether any reprimand is necessary.
"I will not accept his apology," said Chairman Rito Saniatan. "As an elected public official, the general public expect them to behave with dignified matter and professionalism. … An elected official cannot just walk in a meeting and expect to be heard nor behave very unprofessional, undignified, immature."
The confrontation occurred Thursday at a meeting of the board at the Filipino Community Center in Waipahu.
In his letter dated Friday, Berg apologized "for the engagement that transpired at your November 17, 2011 meeting that pitted my intentions with your agenda items when you did not like the content of my statements, nor wanted me to engage on agenda items."
At least one board member, Chuck Wheatley, has filed a complaint against the board on Berg’s behalf.
Wheatley said it appeared Berg was not being given the opportunity to speak.
"They would only allow him one minute, and they kept interrupting him," Wheatley said, noting the agenda lists a time limit of three minutes for speakers. "It was incredibly rude, and when he responded, ‘Hey, I have a right to talk,’ then they called the police on him."
Berg, a fierce critic of the city’s planned steel-wheel-on-steel-rail transit system, attempted to raise his concerns at various times during the meeting and distributed materials to back his case.
When told to focus on the items listed on the agenda and to stay within a one-minute time limit for presentations, Berg became confrontational, "repeatedly disrupting" the meeting and being "very disrespectful" to the board, Saniatan said.
"Councilman Berg’s behavior was like an ‘uncontrolled’ individual with vengeance," Saniatan said in an email message to Council Chairman Ernie Martin, who on Monday said he was still looking into the matter.
Berg said he was invited by three members of the board to speak on an agenda item to discuss whether the subject of rail transit should be added to the board’s next meeting agenda. But he also attempted to raise the issue on an agenda item related to Waipahu High School.
"I wanted to interject comment regarding rail noise," Berg said in his letter. "Waipahu High School may have concerns about the noise and that was what I wanted to convey — and offer a better way with solutions instead of merely complaining."
Saniatan said the agenda item was for school officials to discuss achievements and preparing students for higher education, and was not seeking public comment on rail.
After about an hour, the board was only halfway through its agenda when a motion was made to recess the hearing.
"He was being disruptive, and it was obvious we weren’t going to get anywhere," said Cory Chun, the board’s vice chairman.
Board member Blaine Tsugawa said he called police and reported an unruly attendee at the meeting.
"He tried to introduce and raise his objections to the rail related to whatever topic was on the agenda," Tsugawa said. "It got to a point where he just didn’t want to give up the mike."
No formal complaint was filed with police.
Berg did not immediately return a message seeking additional comment Monday.
Wheatley said he filed the complaint after meeting Friday with Berg and Tom Heinrich, executive secretary of the Neighborhood Commission Office, who suggested he file a complaint so that the actions could be investigated.
"The bottom line is that if anybody looked at the videotape of the meeting, they will see that Tom Berg is absolutely right to have his time to speak, and he was unconstitutionally denied his right to speak," Wheatley said.
