The views stated here are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of the editors of this newspaper.
October 28, 2019
My husband and I are new to Killingworth. When we arrived we were told by our neighbors that an election for First Selectman was coming up and so we started to do as much as we could as quickly as we could to find out about the candidates because whether on a local or national level we take our responsibility and ability to vote very seriously.
The first candidate to approached us was a member of the “Conservative Party” who couldn’t tell us anything about their policies other than that they tried to obstruct everything that the Town of Killingworth tries to do, and then insulted the other candidates. They were quickly disqualified.
We have met Cathy Iino on three occasions. The first was at our property as she was inspecting the new drainage system that the town installed in three sections (one of which is on our property) and what has since turned out to be a monumental disaster causing flooding on our land.
My husband approached Cathy and her team as they were standing on our property, to find out why they were there and to introduce himself. Cathy barely acknowledged him, in fact she just said “hi” and looked away as my husband continued to talk with the other people with her and ask questions. I met her at town hall while pulling some paperwork and experienced the same thing. We just didn’t feel that she was the least bit interested in us or our vote if she didn’t even bother to shake our hands and welcome us to town.
We started looking into the candidates and their backgrounds. I understand that Cathy has been the First Selectwoman for over 10 years, but upon questioning during the forum at True Value this month, she admitted that when she ran for the role the first time she had no experience that would have qualified her for the job; in fact she said that she had been a “writer” but offered no other explanation. Meanwhile her supporters tried to belittle Mr. Lulaj’s lack of political experience. Her participation on several boards and committees was lauded but upon questioning admitted that this is a responsibility of the position and every person in this position would hold the same roles.
While I don’t question Cathy’s dedication to the position, I also believe that dedication is not the same as ability. Additionally, I wonder why we would want to have the same person in that role for so long? Is this role intended to be a career? There have been questions about the solar farm issues, a purchase of land at above actual value, delays in processing of gun permits, etc., and those are the ones that I’ve been able to discover since moving here.
Francesco Lulaj is a successful business owner in our town. He has professed and shown a strong love of our community. His story is the story of the American dream, one that my great grandparents and I’m sure many of yours share, and I think that his perspective on the privilege of living in this country and Killingworth in particular uniquely qualifies him for this role. Having owned several successful restaurants (through a nasty recession I might add) he understands holding the line on spending, how to make our money go further, how to make tough decisions, and how to look for inefficiencies in spending. Not everyone agrees that government is a business but, in my opinion, it is; it is a business with people at its heart and we should never lose sight of that, but it is still a business, and if not run correctly the town will suffer.
Francesco has been out going door to door constantly for months. His wife and children have been by his side supporting him throughout the campaign. He has calmly endured insults hurled at him by the “Conservative” party without offering any reply. At the forum this month he was asked how he would handle the responsibilities of his restaurant when he is elected. Unfortunately, in that instance, we didn’t get to hear his answer because the person who asked the question also answered it for Francesco. However, Mr. Lulaj has made it clear that he will devote himself to the role of First Selectman first and foremost and that his family, primarily his brother, will be running the day to day functions of La Foresta.
Francesco did shake our hands; he did introduce himself and look us in the eye without knowing what our political affiliation was. He welcomed us to this town. He has the background and experience to lead this town both from a human perspective and a financial one. We support him and he will have our votes next week.
Laura and Douglas Lefko
