WARNER ROBINS – The Warner Robins City Council approved an investigative audit of the city’s books at Monday’s meeting amid name-calling and threats of removal.

The vote was 4-2, with council members Tom Simms and John Williams voting against. Voting for the measure were Mike Daley, Daron Lee, Paul Shealy and Bob Wilbanks.

The action came towards the end of the meeting, during council members’ remarks, and decorum broke down.

Lee read a resolution calling for the audit, saying it was an agenda item from last Thursday’s meeting. The audit, using an outside investigator, is to look at the city’s spending and hiring policies from the beginning of the year when Mayor Chuck Shaheen was sworn in.

“There are questions about employees being hired without going through the regular process and partiality and oppression in certain departments,” Lee said.

Shaheen replied he had no problem with an audit but wanted accusations put in writing first.

“Show me the evidence and I’ll open my books,” Shaheen said. “I don’t want to hear just verbal complaints.”

Shaheen then said council members wanted “a man who personally attacked me and the council” to conduct the audit, referring to former city clerk Stan Martin who was fired by the city in December, before Shaheen took office.

“I have absolutely no comment,” Martin said Tuesday when asked about the matter.

Lee said he had asked for an investigation three months ago but no action has been taken.

Shealy, addressing the mayor, said the item was indeed on last Thursday’s agenda but Shaheen asked him not to go along with it because “you were afraid for your job. We shouldn’t be afraid.”

“I’ll call the GBI tomorrow,” Shaheen replied. “You’re out of line and I resent your remarks. If you do it again I’ll have you escorted out of here.”

The vote was taken and Shaheen then surprisingly reopened the meeting to comments from residents. Decorum broke down, with residents calling out questions, council members arguing with each other and Shaheen banging the gavel.

Ken Martin said according to the city charter, an audit has to be performed by a CPA or a firm with CPAs. Martin added that a person dismissed for knowingly violating the city charter is ineligible for employment or elected office for three years.

Dick Walden, who said he’s been a resident since 1984 and has worked with all forms of government, said council meetings this year have been marked by “never-ending bickering” in a departure from how it worked in the past.

“The divisiveness and hostility here will be felt long after your terms end,” Walden said. “The ‘my way or the highway’ attitude doesn’t serve the best interests of the city.”

He compared the council to the U.S. Congress, with “hastily called meetings, limited public participation and behind-the-scenes activity.”

Resident Jay Taylor said he was ashamed of council members.

“If you can’t work together, how can you make the city better?” he asked.

Lee said the purpose of an investigation was to show there wasn’t any misuse of taxpayer funds, to show the city had a “clean slate” and clear up questions.

Taylor pressed his point, saying an investigation should not be done “in a spiteful or vindictive way.”

Former council member Dean Cowart said the council’s actions are being noticed in places as far away as Texas, adding he was asked by an elected official in San Antonio just what was going on here. He advised council members not to disagree in public, hinting that their actions were partially responsible for Robins Air Force Base not being awarded the MC-12W program last month.

Jeannie Duncan of the Jefferson Hills Neighborhood Association reminded Shaheen she has still not received any answers to the group’s questions on June 6 concerning the status of the sports complex construction located behind Huntington Middle School on Wellborn Road.

“We’re not here to cause problems or anger anyone; we just want answers,” Duncan said as she again left copies of the questions.

“If you act on one of these, let us know,” she said. “We do deserve that much.”