Message Added: Has the Federation Outlived It's Founding Purposes?

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Name: Andy Ahpo
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Subject: Has the Federation Outlived It's Founding Purposes?
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Before I begin this article, let me start out by discussing my qualifications. I began studying Tang Soo Do (now referred to as Soo Bahk Do) under Master Mariano Estioko (Dan #759) in Sacramento, California in November, 1959. I am currently a Seventh Dan and have shared the role of Senior Ko Dan Ja of Region #9 (along with Master Vic Martinov) since 1970. I am a Charter Member and crafted the original Charter and By-Laws of the federation. I was also directly involved in two separate major By-Laws revisions over the years and was directly involved with the Charter revisions that took place a few years ago.

I have served the members of this federation as an appointed member of the Board of Directors and have been an officer of the Board in various capacities, including being Chairman of the Board in 1983. I have also served as Regional Examiner and until recently as an appointed member of the Technical Advisory Committee (TAC). Therefore, I feel that I am qualified to write this article.

My primary purpose for writing this article is to encourage you to play a more active role in influencing the current and future direction of the federation through your Board of Directors and the TAC, and to express my feelings regarding my being asked to resign from the TAC last year.

From the beginning, Grandmaster Hwang Kee and the Charter Members had three major goals for establishing the federation. They were and continue to be the following:

1. To form an organization in the United States that would afford us the opportunity to have greater access to the Kwan Jang Nim and his teachings, and to be the only organization in the U.S. recognized by him;
2. To establish an organization in the U.S. that would promote the highest level of quality through standardized techniques and uniform instruction; through the development and dissemination of educational and instructional materials; and through the highest level of instruction at special events, clinics and seminars; and
3. To establish an organization in the U.S. that would establish and maintain an effective and efficient testing and certification process reflecting the highest level of quality and standards.

Although it is also true that we felt it important to take all legal steps necessary to protect, trademark and copyright our symbols, logos and instruction materials, etc. it was never our intent to over-regulate or to get overly involved in regulatory compliance and enforcement activities. It was also never our intent to commercialize our products or to overly tax our members. That is why we established the federation as a non-profit corporation.

I'm sure you will agree, when you review the above list of founding purposes that the federation was in fact extremely successful in accomplishing its mission for approximately 15 years. It was never our intent, as founding members, to directly assist individuals with opening up studios and help them to become financially successful or to monitor their business operations. The way the federation indirectly accomplishes this, however, is by focusing on helping our Dan members to become highly accomplished Martial Artists who not only have developed a high degree of technical skill and expertise, but who have also learned to be highly successful and productive human beings that are also capable of helping others (their students) to become successful. Of course as the federation has grown, it has also evolved into being an effective "organizational network" for individuals seeking information and expertise on how to become successful studio owners as well.

For those of us who have been members of the federation prior to 1990, it is apparent that past Boards of Directors clearly met the founding purposes of our Charter and did, in fact, provide tangible benefits to our members in the past (see my article on the same subject in the federation's April 1983 newsletter also posted in this message board). On the other hand, the Boards of Directors for the past nine years and the federation's Executive Administrator have clearly not been able to meet this same challenge. They have tended to be more self-serving, have actually decreased tangible "cost-free" benefits to members, have significantly raised membership and certification fees, and have managed to bring this federation close to bankruptcy.

This has all happened because they have enacted various initiatives and implemented several "failed programs" that are clearly not in concert with the founding purposes of the federation. Some examples of this include the "Who's Who Project," purchasing and installing two " bug infested" computer systems, exceeding the budget allocated for the federation office renovation and expansion project, eliminating Gup testing fees and implementing an annual Gup membership fee process which continues to fail.

In addition, the federation continues to incur excessive operating and staffing costs and the Board continues to authorize exorbitant salary levels for certain members of headquarters staff. Did you know, for instance, that until the middle of last year the federation was paying two separate Administrators at headquarters $52,000.00 a year salary each for a period of approximately 3 years, and that the current Executive Administrator's salary is close to $60,000.00 per year including benefits?

Did you know that the federation has had an outstanding debt with the Grandmaster for quite a few years now and that we still owe him approximately $50,000.00? Also, that all of this could've been avoided by the Board in the first place because the Grandmaster was willing to "forgive" the original past debt owed him because it was incurred during a period of time when the federation was not in a position to forward Gup membership fees to the Korean Soo Bahk Do Association for our members because we initially started this federation with no money or financial backing? And that they over turned a Board decision they had made a year earlier to "Grandfather" those members into the Korean Soo Bahk Do at no cost and then started forwarding Gup fees to the Grandmaster, henceforth? And that the original decision that would've prevented placing the federation in immediate debt with the Korean Soo Bahk Do was done so with the blessing of the Grandmaster?

While I am on the subject of how our recent Boards of Directors tend to regularly overturn their decisions, did you know that the recent $49 membership increase which was implemented on January 1, was actually defeated as a proposition in the most recent formal Board meeting but that the Chairman somehow got the Board to overturn that decision without a formal meeting? I would like to know exactly how that happened since the members of the Board had been successfully lobbied by their constituents (federation members) in almost all of the Regions to defeat that proposition.

And finally, when is it as members that you have ever seen a federation financial report? As members of the federation, and especially a non-profit corporation, we are entitled to know how our money is spent and we are entitled to a good system of accountability. The fact of the matter is that the Board stopped using the services of a bonafide certified public accountant (CPA) for this purpose approximately 4 years ago, and they continue, not publishing financial reports under acceptable and recognized public accountant standards. We have also been in the rears with our IRS employee taxes from time to time which could result in severe fiscal penalties and could jeopardize our non-profit status.

All of this leads me to conclude that the Boards of the more recent past (last 5 to 9 years) and the current leadership of the federation could care less about our members and about what we think. The services we do receive as studio owners are deplorable. This has included rude telephone behavior by certain newly hired federation staff, extremely long processing times associated with Gup testings, incomplete supply orders, outdated Gup and Dan manuals, and a lack of proper supervision and management of headquarters activities and operations.

Like many big companies that have failed in this country the past five years, there is no regard for the "customer" (the members in this case). Prices are inflated and passed on to the customer, services diminish and are only available if you can afford them or are willing to pay more for them, they make and overturn important decisions, they act as though they are accountable to no one, and of course, they "constantly" reorganize and just get bigger (which can only drive costs up).

I must confess that I was very disappointed to not be considered for an appointment to the Senior Advisory Committee even though I asked to be considered given my 40 years of membership and service to the Moo Duk Kwan. I can only ascertain that I'm still being punished for producing my video last year, which ultimately led to my being requested to resign from the TAC. I fully understand the Grandmaster's authority and right to request my resignation from the TAC, even though I don't believe that it was ever really made clear to me that he did not want me to release my video. This project also involved other individuals who invested over $28,000.00 towards the production of the video. I also wrote to the Grandmaster, about a year and a half prior to the release of the video to explain my reasons and rationale for producing the video. It was not done for personal recognition or to solely benefit me. It was done with the intent to provide Soo Bahk Do and the Grandmaster with more public visibility and to share training and teaching methodologies which have evolved as part of my Ru-Pa as a Soo Bahk Do practitioner and student of the Grandmaster. I still strongly believe that this was in keeping with the Grandmaster's Mission 2000.

Nothing controversial or negative has ever resulted from the release of my video. Instead, I continue to receive nothing but letters of appreciation from members who feel that the video has been helpful to them and their students. The only controversy that has occurred as a result of the video has been about my resignation and departure from the TAC and it was fully supported by almost all of the other members of the former TAC.

I believe that the worse feeling any of us could have as we get older, particularly after we have demonstrated a life time of commitment, is the feeling of being unwanted, discarded or feeling that you are no longer viewed as valuable or worthy. I must confess that this is exactly how I've been feeling recently. I also believe that I am not alone on this subject and that there are other seniors currently who feel the same way based on recent decisions that have been made.

I thought long and hard before writing this article and about how I would choose to initiate it. I know that by doing so I could be further jeopardizing my membership status and could place myself in a position where my "loyalty" could again be put in question. However, I still decided to write it and chose to publish it on the internet because you as members would have never had the opportunity to be aware of my concerns if I had sent it to either the Board, TAC or to be published in a Newsletter.

Keep in mind that I have absolutely nothing to gain from this effort. I wrote it because I truly question whether or not this is still a "member organization" and whether or not the federation has now outlived its original founding purposes. I also believe that the truth needed to be told and that you as members truly realize that you really do have a choice. The opportunity for change is in your hands.

Out of Concern for Our Members,

Andy Ah Po

Charter Member

Region 9

Added on Date: 02:24:57 4/05/99