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Police called to Honolulu Hale after Tom Berg’s disruptive outbursts
City Councilman Tom Berg apologized but was undeterred Friday after police were called following a contentious exchange between Berg and Councilman Breene Harimoto during a Transportation Committee hearing Thursday.
"I’m not worried about my reputation," Berg told the Star-Advertiser. "I’m worried about the taxpayers’ pocketbook. I’m worried about the taxpayers’ plight."
In November, Berg apologized for his argumentative actions at a Waipahu Neighborhood Board meeting that ended when police were called to maintain order. A month later, police released a video of Berg arguing loudly and belligerently with Secret Service personnel outside a Waikiki hotel after Berg was denied re-entry into an Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation reception.
During the latter incident, police said Berg was intoxicated and that they smelled alcohol on his breath and clothes. Berg acknowledged at the time that he had been drinking, but denied being drunk.
Thursday’s committee hearing included a discussion about property acquisition for the city’s rail project, and Berg wanted answers to a variety of questions, including what will happen to human burial remains that are discovered during rail construction.
"Here I am at a committee meeting, and I want to talk about property acquisition … and what’s happening with the iwi," Berg said.
Committee Chairman Harimoto "was trying to stop me, saying, ‘That’s not on the agenda, that’s not on the agenda,’" Berg said. "I was there to do the business on behalf of the people. I showed up at work to ask questions. … I didn’t leave my seat and did not make any threatening gestures. Obviously, clearly, clearly nobody was threatened."
Berg said he understood that police were called but that no officers questioned him and no action was taken.
Harimoto did not return messages from the Star-Advertiser late Friday. He declined to appear on camera for KITV-4, but the station quoted him as saying, "I can tell you I was afraid. I couldn’t contain him. He was totally out of control."
Councilman Stanley Chang, vice chairman of the Transportation Committee, said police were called by a Council member whom he declined to identify. "I was very concerned about the situation," Chang told the Star-Advertiser. "I felt the transportation chair acted appropriately in maintaining decorum in the meeting. Because it’s not the first time that a particular Council member has been disruptive, I felt it was very appropriate to have professional help be there to maintain decorum."
In a written statement Friday, Berg said:
"I was not threatening anyone during (Thursday’s) committee meeting. I apologize if it appeared that way. I think there are major important issues now at stake and we need further answers and honest discussion about them right now."
Berg told the Star-Advertiser that the issue not being discussed at the City Council is that "buses beat rail."
Harimoto "is not letting people talk about buses beating rail," Berg said. "I think he felt threatened because I was exposing that buses beat rail and you don’t need to spend this money."
