Jan. 29, 2021 – Three board members of the Chatham Area Transit Authority (CAT) including vice chairman Dr. Gertrude Robinson, today issued a statement on the surprising move by six members of the CAT board of directors to fire their CEO Bacarra Mauldin.
The board of directors convened a special meeting today at 2 p.m.
The statement is as follows:
As you know, the Board of Directors of Chatham Area Transit decided on Tuesday January 26th to terminate the contract of CEO Bacarra Mauldin. The vote was not unanimous. Out of 9 members, three did not support the termination application. We – Clinton Edminister, Dr. Gertrude Robinson and Detric Leggett of the City of Savannah Alderman – voted NO.
We voted not to quit Bacarra Mauldin because we believe she didn’t do anything wrong. We clearly condemn the recent statement by Chairman Deidrick Cody that the Board of Directors has no confidence in Ms. Mauldin. That’s a lie. The three of us, who voted NO to the dismissal of Ms. Mauldin, had full confidence in her leadership and trusted that she would make the best decisions for the agency.
This board of directors hired Ms. Mauldin seven months ago to bring about a positive change at CAT, an organization that has suffered greatly from the grievances of some board members. That is what prompted this joint declaration. Over the years and certainly with the resignation of Ms. Mauldin, this board of directors has significantly hampered any progress at CAT for the foreseeable future.
As Ms. Mauldin sought to stabilize the agency’s finances, improve employee morale, and build solid relationships with community and business leaders, our board members became increasingly hostile to their actions. There was nothing Ms. Mauldin could do to please certain board members. We, Dr. Robinson, Alderman Leggett, and Mr. Edminster have never received any evidence of legal or ethical violations. Instead, we just saw Ms. Mauldin build important relationships in the community, nurture employee engagement, step up our marketing efforts, and guide us on a path to long-term financial health.
Our community deserves the integrity, passion and intelligence shown by Ms. Mauldin, and her resignation is not only a great loss but also a devastating blow to the future stability of this organization.
If the goal of the Board of Directors is to stabilize the organization and restore trust in the community with staff and drivers, the honest and lawful path is to reinstate Bacarra Mauldin immediately as Chief Executive Officer at Chatham Area Transit.
Kind regards on duty,
CAT Vice President Clinton Edminster
January 29 – Statement by the Vice Chairman of the CAT Board of Directors and other members on the dismissal of the CAT CEO
Jan 29, 2021 – Three board members of the Chatham Area Transit Authority (CAT) including Vice Chairman Dr. Gertrude Robinson, today issued a statement on the surprising move by six members of the CAT board of directors to fire their CEO Bacarra Mauldin.
The board of directors convened a special meeting today at 2 p.m.
The statement is as follows:
As you know, the Board of Directors of Chatham Area Transit decided on Tuesday January 26th to terminate the contract of CEO Bacarra Mauldin. The vote was not unanimous. Out of 9 members, three did not support the termination application. We – Clinton Edminister, Dr. Gertrude Robinson and Detric Leggett of the City of Savannah Alderman – voted NO.
We voted not to quit Bacarra Mauldin because we believe she didn’t do anything wrong. We clearly condemn the recent statement by Chairman Deidrick Cody that the Board of Directors has no confidence in Ms. Mauldin. That’s a lie. The three of us, who voted NO to the dismissal of Ms. Mauldin, had full confidence in her leadership and trusted that she would make the best decisions for the agency.
This board of directors hired Ms. Mauldin seven months ago to bring about a positive change at CAT, an organization that has suffered greatly from the grievances of some board members. That is what prompted this joint declaration. Over the years and certainly with the resignation of Ms. Mauldin, this board of directors has significantly hampered any progress at CAT for the foreseeable future.
As Ms. Mauldin sought to stabilize the agency’s finances, improve employee morale, and build solid relationships with community and business leaders, our board members became increasingly hostile to their actions. There was nothing Ms. Mauldin could do to please certain board members. We, Dr. Robinson, Alderman Leggett, and Mr. Edminster have never received evidence of legal or ethical violations. Instead, we just saw Ms. Mauldin build important relationships in the community, nurture employee engagement, step up our marketing efforts, and guide us on a path to long-term financial health.
Our community deserves the integrity, passion and intelligence shown by Ms. Mauldin, and her resignation is not only a great loss but also a devastating blow to the future stability of this organization.
If the goal of the Board of Directors is to stabilize the organization and restore trust in the community with staff and drivers, the honest and lawful path is to reinstate Bacarra Mauldin immediately as Chief Executive Officer at Chatham Area Transit.
Kind regards on duty,
CAT Vice President Clinton Edminster