'A stitch in time saves nine'

The issue: Hernando County jail conditions. Our opinion: Accountability demanded.

The meaning of this phrase is that if you take care of small problems before they get big, it can save time and/or money. The county government should consider the wisdom in this little phrase.

At Tuesday's meeting, Sheriff Richard Nugent dropped a small bombshell on county commissioners, reversing his position on the question of taking over and running the Hernando County Jail.

Well, maybe it was not such a small bomb, considering the reverberations are still being felt. It was a show-and-tell as the sheriff presented a slide show of pictures that emphasized the deplorable conditions at the jail. Rusting doors, water leakage, cracks in walls and floors were so obvious that we wonder who is responsible for situations like this and how do they continue to exist?

Numbers were thrown around about cost of repairs that could range from $1 million to $3 million. Of course, we believe this was done without any qualitative analysis by a competent person to assess the repairs and actual cost of corrective action.

There seems to exist a general feeling in county government of let's just get another day behind us, another day closer to retirement and golden parachutes in the form of a cash-out policy on accrued and unpaid time off not seen in the real world.

What about taking care of county taxpayers' interest?

Why not report deficiencies sooner, such as the deterioration of jail, before they become major financial burdens on a budget that is already severely strained. Somehow the government is not working as it is supposed to and yet we do not hear county commissioners ask for accountability.

Maybe it's time to discipline some more department heads for their complete and utter failure when it comes to issues like the jail. People must be held accountable for their action or inaction. The millions that it may require to repair will come from the hard work and efforts of the Hernando County taxpayers collectively. They deserve better. Furthermore, they should demand it.

If serious action is not taken by the administration then the public will feel, rightfully so, that their representatives on the county commission don't have the taxpayers' interest as a priority.

County officials may consider fixing some personnel problems now that will same them time and money later. And by the way, while they are at it, they might want to fix the paid time off policy as well.

After all, a stitch in time saves nine.