School Board Race Getting Ugly

Mobile County School Board Mobile County School System The fight for a Mobile County School Board seat heats up..one candidate wants the other thrown off the July ballot.

by Diana Lucio

Published: Thu, June 26, 2008 - 9:55 pm CST Last Updated: Thu, June 26, 2008 - 10:03 pm CST

The gloves are off in the race for a Mobile County School Board seat, while one candidate is trying to get the other thrown off the July ballot. Fleet Belle currently holds the District Four position. Belle is up against Levon Manzie for a runoff July 15th, but Belle has filed an official election complaint to kick Manzie off the ballot. Belle says Manzie did not submit his paperwork for candidacy with the Mobile County Probate Court when he was supposed to. "I filed and I filed properly, if I am not above the law, neither is my opponent,"Said Belle. While the Mobile County School Board member filed the complaint with the Mobile County Probate Court, today Judge Don Davis handed it over to the Democratic party. Davis says the Probate Court can not handle the complaint because it is not their jurisdiction. Manzie admits there was an error when he filed, but he says he followed the Democratic party's rules. "I feel I followed the instructions as I was given and I feel in the course of doing that we filed the paper work as we were instructed,"Said Manzie. Belle tells us he plans to appeal the Judge Don Davis' decision with the State Supreme Court.

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southfan1981 Says:

Fri, Jun 27, 2008 at 4:03 pm

Where is the itemized budget kept? Where are the records? I understand they have to sign off on the budget each year. Where are their copies?

justme Says:

Fri, Jun 27, 2008 at 3:45 pm

Can I get an Amen, We have a board that has been increasingly since 1947 going down hill due to lack of concern, increase in vindictiveness, self-centeredness, inability to be open-mined in attempting to reach agreements for the daily operations of the schools, lack of concern and respect for the teachers, students, their growth in learning. Now, it seems more and more that they are so smug and self righteous it’s their private club and they’ll be D_______ if any qualified, educated, concerned, morally upright person is going to get them out. And let’s not let the public off the hook, for if they’d really cared and came together in the cause of our kids, we would have a Fantastic future that would benefit us all.

southfan1981 Says:

Fri, Jun 27, 2008 at 8:55 am

When I wrote federal grants, we had a line by line budget CLEARLY indicating our expenses, every purchase and item. Where is the school board’s budget and how can we see it now? I am certain it has to be available to the public.

asda Says:

Fri, Jun 27, 2008 at 8:41 am

Also they should have never purchased the old QMS building. They should have stayed where they were. Instead they moved into the new building and spent big bucks on Flat screen tvs and I sure the offices are very nice inside. Waste Waste Waste.—- Why can they not have an audit of where the money went. If they are found to have used funds in unethical ways they should be sent to jail.

asda Says:

Fri, Jun 27, 2008 at 8:38 am

I agree—- Throw them all out and start over again. They can not even put together a proper budget. They over spent the past two years and now they have to fire a bunch of teachers. Lets get some new people in there they can not mess it up anymore than it already is.

cmb1 Says:

Fri, Jun 27, 2008 at 7:48 am

Belle knows he will loose! We need to get rid of all present school board members!