Most residents know Nyota Figgs as the Calumet City Clerk. It is a part time job for which she takes in a whopping $120k annually. This high salary was established for her during the tenure of former Mayor Qualkenbush. What residents might not realize is that Figgs holds a second city job, which is being on the Calumet Memorial Park Board.
Being on park board is also an elected office and Figgs is up for re-election in this upcoming municipal cycle.
Figgs sought to wield her accumulated power and resources to skate into re-election. She tried to have young first time candidate Erica Jenkins kicked off the ballot so that Figgs’ name would be the only one residents could vote for.
As good honest candidates do when they participate in the election process, Jenkins went door to door talking to residents to gather the required amount of valid signatures. Each of those signatures expresses support for Jenkins ideals and the resident’s belief in the election process.
Figgs’ effort to invalidate those signatures amounts to disregarding the voice of the community and taking away their choice, so that she could occupy a second elected office without having to earn it.
The plush years Figgs has enjoyed seems to have given her quite a sense of entitlement. Figgs have become famous for bogus legal filings, having been behind a large series of failed litigation directed at other elected officials. She also took some $20k in taxpayer funds from the federal Paycheck Protection Program as we reported.
Fortunately just like her other meritless legal measures and court filings, her effort to take away from voters who they want on the park board has similarly failed.