Emails show dysfunction at council
Tensions among Wellington City councillors have been laid bare in a series of leaked emails exposing strained relationships within the organisation.
The emails, obtained by Stuff, include a call for councillors to stop ‘‘bitching and moaning’’, questions over mayor Andy Foster’s leadership, and a claim councillors had failed to act responsibly in the face of the Covid19 crisis.
The revelations come as councillor Diane Calvert takes official action over bullying claims made against her by councillor Tamatha Paul, and a facilitator is called in to help iron out disagreements among elected representatives.
Rongotai Labour MP and former deputy mayor Paul Eagle said the situation could lead to a government commissioner being brought in to help the council, noting the facilitator recruited by Foster – Sue Wells – had previously shown support for the idea.
In 2012, Wells, then a senior Christchurch City councillor, said elected members could no longer do their jobs properly following a series of public blunders and should be replaced by a government-appointed commissioner.
‘‘The mere presence of Sue Wells means the council has major problems,’’ Eagle said.
‘‘As a former deputy mayor, the situation is the worst I’ve seen in a decade.’’
The emails circulating among councillors highlighted concerns over the deteriorating public perception of the council, and an inability for some councillors to work together. The missives revealed councillors were upset their infighting was being exposed in stories published by Stuff.
Councillor Simon Woolf sent an email to his colleagues on Tuesday urging them to work together, following the public falling-out between Calvert and Paul.
The dispute occurred after Paul accused Calvert of bullying her during a recent council meeting.
‘‘Sometimes in the heat of an issue, it happens, and we lose our discipline,’’ he said.
‘‘Just at the moment, it would be more prudent that we think about our people, our city, and what measures we are going to take to make Wellington a more resilient and easier place to live, work and play in post-Covid.’’
Woolf went on to say communities
were looking to councillors for strong leadership and they had ‘‘failed in that endeavour’’.
‘‘Our community seeing us bitching and moaning at each other is far from offering great leadership.’’
A few days earlier, councillor Jill Day took aim at Foster in a group thread over comments the mayor made that day in a Stuff article.
Foster accused some councillors of putting personal political ambitions above serving the city, and said the mayor’s biggest challenge over the past six months had been dealing with a divided council.
Day said the councillors had held constructive discussions only a few days prior and were excited about working together.
‘‘Reading your comments today, Andy, makes it seem that maybe you don’t want to follow that path at all?
‘‘Building trust as a leader certainly doesn’t look like this. I have worked with many inspirational leaders over the years, and have never before seen a leader attack their team like this, when they are at the same time wanting to discuss how they will move forward together.’’
Yesterday, the spat between Calvert and Paul escalated when Calvert submitted a code of conduct complaint to Foster over Paul’s bullying accusation.
The complaint asked Foster to investigate whether Paul had breached regulations around personal judgment, respect for others, objectivity, and relationships with other members.
The emails also revealed that Foster’s chief of staff, Anusha Guler, had resigned to take up a role at the Department of Internal Affairs.