Dear editor,

I was raised in Great Bend. Although I no longer live there, Great Bend holds a very special place in my heart, and I would love to move back again someday. I follow the news in Great Bend, and still have several friends that have made Great Bend their life long home.

I have been reading about the suspension of Police Chief Couch. I am dismayed! From someone on the outside looking in  all I can say is that it appears that the City Administrator is a BULLY. He seems to have an agenda that does not have the citys best interests at heart  but his own interests. The City Council and Mayor let him decree and run the show  when it should be the other way around. Who is monitoring his actions? Where are the checks and balances? Someone needs to step up and put a stop to this. Suspending the police chief and then taking on his duties? Something doesnt seem right here. 

The City Administrator should be receiving direction from the City Council and Mayor -- acting as the liaison between the Mayor/City Council/City Departments and the public they are elected/appointed to serve. He/she should attend Council Meetings and present reports on policy, budget, and other information to the assembled audience.

Its time to abolish the good ole boys club! Reinstate the Police Chief and allow him to do the job he was hired to do. Suspend (with possibility of termination) the City Administrator and audit every step he has taken since taking the office. Rewrite the Standard Operating Procedures to include more checks and balances. Elect a Mayor/City Council that will put the interests of Great Bend and its people at the top of their list. And then work together to make Great Bend a place that people want to live in.

Come on GB do what is right.

Tammy (Baker) Clowers

former Great Bend Resident

currently living in Aurora, Colo.