Selectmen Candidate Opposes Controversial Town Meeting Date

The date of the special Town Meeting has created a stir in Seekonk, with two of the five selectmen refusing to sign the warrant because it falls on the first night of the Jewish holiday Passover. The meeting will go forward on March 25, Board of Selectmen Chair Francis Cavaco told Patch, because a majority of the selectmen approved it.

Selectmen candidate Mike Brady says the meeting should be moved to March 27. He released the following statement to the media:

The selectmen have caused people to make a tough decision, namely do I attend the special town meeting or do I observe my religious beliefs. Although I do not believe that they intentionally scheduled the meeting on that date with the religious holiday in mind, once the conflict was brought to their attention they should have adjusted the meeting accordingly.

Elected officials must be mindful of all of their constituents and they must be flexible enough to acknowledge when mistakes are made, and more importantly, take the appropriate corrective action. The decision to keep the meeting on the scheduled date may cause the disenfranchisement of voters and that is unacceptable. 

The selectmen should reconsider their decision and make the first item on their Wednesday, March 6 meeting agenda the fact that the special Town Meeting will be rescheduled for Wednesday, March 27 at 7 p.m. at Seekonk High School.  The new warrant could be signed and then legally posted by 6:30 p.m. on March 6, thus the 21-day requirement would be met. 

I commend the two selectmen who did not sign the warrant for taking a stand and doing the right thing. I have made respect and civility a central theme of my campaign and I believe it is time for our elected and appointed officials to make the responsible, respectful and moral decision to reschedule the meeting.