A wise old friend of mine once told me, “The American people will almost always do the right thing if you just tell them the truth.” I have often thought of that in the aftermath of the devastating fire in Lahaina.

Our leaders from the state and county have not been forthcoming with the people they are paid to represent. After nearly a month, there are so many unanswered questions, and from the very beginning it seemed to me they were trying to hide something.

Local media outlets have repeatedly reached out to the Maui mayor’s office in an effort to get clarification on things like the lists of missing persons and children, and often their requests were ignored. And after the heroic efforts of our EMT folks during the fire on Maui, the state Department of Health, without any explanation, awarded the contract to another company (“Contracts for new ambulance firm raise questions,” Star-Advertiser, Sept. 6).

As citizens of Hawaii we deserve answers. B.J. Penn was right when he said these guys have forgotten who they work for. All I am saying is, just tell us the truth!

Steve Alumbaugh

Wailuku

>> Contact: 529-4831 (phone), letters@staradvertiser.com, staradvertiser.com/editorial/submit-letter