PEARSON, Ga. (WALB) - The Pearson Mayor will be leading the city council meeting tonight a day after being released from jail.

Johnson was arrested and jailed a month go on multiple fraud charges. Now, he is required to wear an ankle monitor and be escorted by law enforcement when at city hall.

Pearson residents say the real issue started long before the mayor’s arrest. Despite the scene that will be at tonight’s city council meeting, Johnson’s presence isn’t the biggest concern for the people of Pearson.

The residents of Pearson have problems that go beyond the mayor’s legal troubles. Many say life is a daily struggle. Some are dealing with issues like sewage overflow, poor water pressure and sometimes no water service at all.

Some say they are forced to travel to neighboring counties for clean water.

“To get clean water, I will load up and go to Tifton or Folkston, somewhere like that, to get clean water. That’s kind of tough to keep doing and keep running getting water from county to county like that when they can just fix it here,” said Freddie Linton Jr., a resident of Pearson.

Frustrated residents say they’ve heard empty promises from officials for years about water issues, but little has changed. Many say they feel abandoned by local leaders who claim to be working on solutions. Now, they’re calling for real leadership.

Linton said, ”We have so many people to come and say ‘Look, you vote me in. You put me in the office. I’m going to do this and that. When you need a problem or see a problem come see me, but this don’t get done.' We need somebody here that stand up for the people of Pearson, Georgia.”

Many people are expected to attend tonight’s city council meeting in hopes that their leaders help to solve these problems. People are now looking to their mayor for answers, who has big problems of his own.

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