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Politics & Government

Gallus Obert: Township Watchdog

One man's quest for higher accountability in government leads him to Election Day.

If you ever watch Bristol's public access channel (Comcast channel 22 or Verizon channel 45) you likely have seen Gallus Obert. His hand, always raised, ready to come to the podium with a stack full of papers -- pages of ordinances and documents outlining past meetings and agendas.

Obert calls himself the "watchdog" though he said he's certain the township officials call him something else more derogatory.

"I'm certain I'm sometimes a big thorn in the side of (Bristol Township) Council," Obert said.

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Since moving to the township 17 years ago, Obert has diligently attended over 200 township council meetings. In many ways, Obert's story so far starts and ends with campaign signs.

When moving into the township, it was an off-year campaign season, and he said he was immediately struck by the amount of political campaign signs that littered the streets. To his count, he said more than 1,000 signs were scattered across Levittown Parkway. He said in some places, the amount of signs were so dense that they obstructed passing motorist's view.

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"It was such a disgrace." Obert said. "I needed to do something."

Obert went to council to do something about the signs. He said he even printed out a stack of ordinances 4-inches deep to be prepared. Despite several violations in the bylaws, he said the council did little to address the issue.

To Obert, the council was complacent, and years later little to him has changed.

"For years, it seems that (Bristol Township) council just wants to deal with problems in secret, behind closed doors in private meetings," Obert said. "They just want to rubber-stamp the issues and move on."

Obert said he is now one of the few that are putting up campaign signs on Levittown Parkway, albeit only in locations compliant with township ordinances. Obert's fight for accountability has led him to be one of the leading Republican candidates for Bristol Township council in 2011. 

He said his major platform is waste. Obert said he sees waste everywhere, from the police department to the budget line. If elected, he said he would cut needless budget expenses and hire more full time positions to eliminate "needless overtime payments."

A big part of Obert's campaign plans involve maximizing various departments by fully staffing them. License and Inspections, Obert said as an example, could benefit from more staff to maximize profit from better gathering various licensing fees and fines.

"We need to attract talented individuals, but at an equitable salary, so we can run our departments to their fullest efficiency. Our systems are broken and I know how to fix it," Obert said.

Obert also wants to see laptops installed right at the council tables. With direct access to ordinances and laws, Obert said the council would be better equipped to deal with a residents complaint or issue.

"Residents get frustrated when they have to wait weeks to hear an answer to their solution," Obert said. 

He said all issues in government can be solved by a simple measure: Finding the problem, measuring its scope, analyzing it, improving its weakest parts and controlling it.

The government in the township is inefficient, Obert alleges, because there are far too many self-interested parties.

"Many past members of council, and even candidates running, are more focused on themselves and their interests than the residents," Obert said. "All of my opponents are Bristol business owners. I don't run a business. I have no vested interest other than in where my tax dollar goes."

Bristol Township Council's election is Tuesday, Nov. 8.

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