Five minutes before 10am today, staff of the Joeten Kiyu Public Library turned their backs on what they allege is a “climate of fear” under executive director John Gonzales–walking out on their boss and his secretary and effectively forcing the library to close as of 1pm today.<\/p>\n
They demanded his resignation and a formal investigation into his ethics, behavior, and finances as executive director.<\/p>\n
Staff consolidated in the library’s parking lot in protest.<\/p>\n
Three JKPL Library Council board members arrived on the scene to inquire on what was happening.<\/p>\n
A little after 12pm staff and several board members walked back into the library for a closed door meeting.<\/p>\n
The protest was not planned, staff said. But was triggered after a shouting match between Gonzales and a staff member during an informal meeting this morning.<\/p>\n
Tension had been building, staff said, between them and the director over the years.<\/p>\n
Staff claimed that Gonzales had read copies of the JKPL’s transition report to the governor, where they confidentially had aired their grievances against the director in oral testimony to the transition team who led the report.<\/p>\n
Saipan Tribune tried but could not reach Gonzales over the phone.<\/p>\n
This is a developing story.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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