A former Columbia mayoral candidate is urging Columbia’s city council to give CPD and the Columbia Fire Department the tools, equipment and manpower they need to keep the city safe.
Randy Minchew spoke from the podium during Tuesday night’s council meeting.
“But the last time I checked, when a Columbia citizen or a member of the public calls 911, the mayor or city council members or any of the anti law-and-order police-hating activists who stand in front of you every week ever take the call, hop in a squad car, jump on a fire truck or in an ambulance and show up for us,” Minchew says.
Minchew tells the council that their silence about public safety is, quote, “deafening.” He’s calling on them to publicly recognize the dangers that CPD officers put themselves in every day.
“We must ask those in power to respond appropriately and not make public statements about city employees before the facts are known about high-profile issues. We cannot have our elected officials publicly degrading or demoralizing the first responders who go out and put their lives on the line every day to keep us safe,” says Minchew.
He also emphasized integrity, while speaking at the podium.
“We must demand that you uphold the principles of democracy and act with integrity, stand up for all the people you lead. The public’s trust is a precious commodity, and it must not be taken for granted,” Minchew says.
He concluded his presentation by thanking Columbia’s seven council members, including Mayor Barbara Buffaloe, for their time and for their willingness to serve on the council. Buffaloe beat Minchew by about 800 votes in the April 2022 election.
