City Councilman Charles Djou has fired his top three legislative aides out of a small office of five.

Djou declined to elaborate on the details of his decision, saying only that it was “;an internal management decision that I reached mutually with my staff.”;

On Dec. 2, Djou met with his chief of staff, Lori Wingard, and legislative aides Francisco Figueiredo and Stanford Fichtman to inform them he was letting them go.

The aides paint a different picture of their departure, saying it was abrupt and unexpected. As of yesterday, the aides were still paid as city employees but it is unclear how much longer they will be on the city's payroll.

“;I respect his decision and I wish the best for him,”; said Wingard, a single mother of two young children , who worked for Djou for six years. Wingard accepted a job with the state while the other two continue to look for jobs.

Djou is interviewing potential employees to fill the positions.

He will keep his secretary, Sylvia Matsuda, and a part-time worker, Sylvia Lorenz. There is also another part-time community liaison for Djou who works outside of Honolulu Hale.

“;They're good people,”; said Lorenz. “;Councilman Djou had his reasons and they know what his reasons are.”;