Paul Sethy
FREMONT: Fifty-year old Technology Manager Paul Sethy is a Candidate for Alameda County Water District (ACWD) Board of Directors. In a statement on the eve of the polls, he said, “As a near lifetime resident of the Tri-City area, I would be honored to serve our community on the Alameda County Water District Board of Directors. I have been a close observer of ACWD for many years and a regular community representative at board meetings and technical workshops. I am well versed in the key issues affecting our district and prepared to serve productively.
“First, I am committed to making sure ACWD provides clean, safe, and reliable water at the most reasonable rates. Second, I pledge to be the taxpayers’ watchdog in promoting responsible budgeting and strong financial management.
Other priorities: deliver superior customer service, encourage wider adoption of water conservation methods, improve the seismic integrity of our local water infrastructure, and fully restore our fishery and wildlife habitat in the Alameda Creek watershed. I firmly oppose the proposed $11 billion State Water Bond. Let’s get California’s fiscal house in order first!”
Paul Sethy was educated at Ohlone College & U.C. Berkeley (Economics). His career involves Silicon Valley high technology management with strong financial and operational skills.
In Community Activities, he is Vice-President, Fremont Cultural Arts Council; Member, Water Education Foundation; Member, Alliance for Water Efficiency. He has won endorsements from Alameda County Democratic Party and Business for Good Government Committee, a Fremont Chamber of Commerce PAC.
Giving his background, Paul Sethy says, “I was a candidate for the Alameda County Democratic Central Committee in June 2008. I did not win a seat in that election, but still pulled strongly in terms of number of votes, losing the 6th seat by about 700 votes – the first five seats all went to elected officials.
“This past June, it kind of went under the radar screen when I ran again and this time placed 4th (with about 10500 votes as opposed to 5450 in June 2008) behind three elected officials (Newark school board member, Union City councilman, and Washington Township Hospital board member). I am now a Member-Elect of the central committee for the calendar year term 2011-2012, representing Assembly District 20 (Fremont, Newark, Union City, and parts of Hayward, Castro Valley, and Pleasanton). I am not sure if this is true or not, but I believe I was the only non-incumbent candidate of East Indian/Pakistani heritage to win a competitive race anywhere in the SF Bay Area in the June primary election. I am also now the first person of East Indian/Pakistani descent to ever win a seat on the Alameda County Democratic Central Committee. Persistence pays off!
“I am now running in my second election this year for the Alameda County Water District Board of Directors in the November 2010 election. I hope you will keep an eye on the race as I feel I have a pretty good shot at winning the open seat. I am running against two Republicans in a non-partisan race, the incumbent and a recently retired senior manager of ACWD.
“I have the endorsements of the Alameda County Democratic Party and the Business for Good Government Committee, a political action committee affiliated with the Fremont Chamber of Commerce. I am really proud of the BGG endorsement as I was the only endorsed candidate for the ACWD race, over an experienced incumbent who works in the water industry for the EPA and the recently retired senior manager of ACWD — 11 years at ACWD and 22 years before that at East Bay MUD.
“This is my third try for the ACWD board. I first ran in 1979 while I was a 19-year old student at U.C. Berkeley (living in Fremont). Then last year, after longtime board member Art Lampert passed away, I threw my name into the hopper to be appointed to the board.
“After considering all candidates, the board was deadlocked for two weeks at 2-2 between appointing myself or former Fremont Vice-Mayor Steve Cho. As a compromise they finally settled on appointing Glenn Reynolds to the board. He has a strong water industry background and has served well during this interim period.
“I was not intending to run against him or the incumbent this November, but Glenn announced this summer that he would be moving out of the district thus opening up his seat. Although, I am not out of the water industry, having spent my career in high technology, I am very knowledgeable about the district. My father, Tejpal Singh Sethy (Punjabi Sikh family), worked in civil engineering at ACWD for most of his career beginning in the early 1960s and I grew up learning all about the water industry from him.
“I am also one of just a handful of people in the community that regularly attends the monthly board meetings and special workshops and that has a detailed knowledge of the district’s infrastructure, finances, and legislative issues affecting the Alameda Creek Watershed. I believe I come well prepared to serve and with great insight into the issues affecting the water industry — this is not a happenstance shot at elective office.
“The Alameda County Water District is the first and oldest water district in the State of California. As a first generation immigrant who grew up in Washington Township and very closely to the water business, I believe I offer the community a valuable historical perspective on the evolution of our intricate water system, and one that I hope the community will appreciate.”
India Post News Service
