Letter: Actions of Chairman disrespectful?

To the editor:

On Sept. 15, the Hopi Tribal Council corrected its actions from Sept. 1, the Labor Day holiday. The Hopi Tribal Constitution, Article IV, Section 4 specifies that "Representatives shall be recognized by the Council only if they are certified by the Kikmongwi of their respective villages." Chairman Nuvamsa violated this provision by allowing Anna Silas, John Poleahla and Richard Nayatewa of First Mesa to be given the oath of office and seated on the Council on the basis of Shirley Adams, who claimed to be the Kikmongwi of First Mesa.

As a result, the actual Kikmongwi of First Mesa, James M. Tewayguna appeared before the Tribal Council and asked the Council to correct their mistake of Sept. 1. He certified Dale Sinqual, Steve Youvella and Celestine Youvella to be the representatives from First Mesa. They were given the oath of office and seated on the Council. A roll call was made and a quorum was established. I then made the motion that Anna Silas, John Poleahla and Richard Nayatewa be removed from the Council. Fourteen representatives were in session and they all voted to approve my motion. As a result, the mistake the Council made on Sept. 1 was corrected.

On Sept. 16, Chairman Nuvamsa said it was unfortunate that this was done and said all actions of the previous day were null and void. He then walked out with the comment that Council was in recess until further notice.

In my opinion, such behavior is uncalled for by someone who claims to be the leader of the Hopi Tribe and may well be a violation of the bylaws of the Hopi Constitution. Article I, Section 1 specifies that, "the Chairman shall preside over all meetings of the Tribal Council. He shall perform all duties of a Chairman fairly and impartially."

In my opinion, his behavior on Sept. 16 was certainly not fair or impartial. In my 12 years on the Hopi Tribal Council, I have never seen a leader behave like this. Such behavior indicated profound disrespect for the representatives of the Hopi villages.

Caleb H. Johnson

Kykotsmovi, Ariz.

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