An obvious measurement of one’s leadership abilities is who someone surrounds themselves with when he or she is the leader. Take a look at the top level people at the sheriff’s office. They are the same old past glory, all about themselves, fear mongering bullies, who have been, behind the scenes, truly running the sheriff office for the past 12 years. Sadly, under their advisement of whom to hire and fire, where to police, who to hate, how many 4 by 4 trucks to by, etc., they have succeeded at literally running the sheriff’s office aground. Some of the very best law enforcement officers who want to work in Jasper County are not employed at the sheriff’s office under this administration because of long standing jealousy, grudges, and acrimony. The important thing should be providing the very best services possible to the people of Jasper County, not appeasing some employees’ insecurities, jealousies, grudges, and animosities.

In regards to traffic enforcement, there has always been a taboo about traffic enforcement at a small sheriff’s office. So I am on the fence on this one. A sheriff’s office the size of the Jasper County’s in poor rural counties like these, probably would be committing political suicide if it appeared that their primary concern was traffic enforcement. So I say that traffic enforcement has to be done with “consideration.” Politics, as we all know, to some degree, is a part of life. But true too, the inability to provide the sense of public safety and security is just as toxic for a sheriff.  

As far as a white person or a republican being elected sheriff in Jasper County, that is a disturbing electorate issue. Elections all over South Carolina are greatly influenced on Sunday mornings between 11:00am and 1:00pm; which, by the way, is also one of the  most segregated times and period of the week. So the culpability of voting along racial lines is one that is shared. Colin Powell could not get elected as sheriff in Jasper County running as a republican because of the mindset of the electorate in Jasper County. But this narrow-mindedness is not limited to Jasper County. Barrack Obama lost South Carolina in the general election. I’ll bet his skin color had a lot to do with that.

I am sad that the talk of black and white tends to ease into these debates. I naively believe that just maybe, like other places, that have progressed and prospered, when you do an outstanding job in your positions, the majority of people, who are good fair people won’t care or will forget what color you are, or where you are from. Gregory Jenkins was the chosen heir apparent to be Sheriff 15 years ago, regardless of whether he could do the job, or will have prepared himself professionally to do this job when his time came. He was strong in the church; can get the votes, is from here, was a nice guy. Those were his qualifications.

Let me make this as clear as a bell. I am not trying to characterize Jasper County Sheriff, Gregory Jenkins as a bad person. I don’t dislike him or anyone. But do not like poor performance and mediocrity. This highly visible, elected position comes with a lot of power and responsibility. A sheriff can hire and fire without cause. This office is funded with taxpayers’ dollars. So he is fair game for criticism. If Jenkins was a white sheriff and things were as bad as they seem, I would be saying the same things. I stand by my in over his head, gross mismanagement, and poor leadership statements I have offered on my posts. In Jasper County, too many important positions of leadership are given to people based not on professional backgrounds and qualifications, but because of who they know, their skin color; and because they go to the right church. This is killing Jasper County right before our eyes.