State Member apologises and clarifies comments

The Editor,

After speaking with a number of Wellington community members, I would like to apologise for comments that were attributed to me in a story published late last week.

Anybody who knows me, knows I am not a racist person, and while I don’t deny making the comment as it was printed, I believe there should have been more context to the overall discussion, and therefore I would like to provide some detail on what I was actually trying to communicate.

Wellington is a town full of wonderful people, and my wife, children and I have spent many hours involved in local community and sporting groups over the years.

However the issues that confront the community are complex, and as much as I wish I could click my fingers and fix them, I can’t.

There are a number of programs in place to help people, and work is being done by a myriad of groups, ranging from police through to elected and unelected community leaders, to ensure Wellington is a great place to live, work and play.

Despite this, there are still problems that appear from time to time, and some of those are crime related and drug related... that’s exactly why I have been working so hard on a drug court and rehab facility.

There’s no one quick fix, but a concerted effort around programs for young people and involving the right people, including police, is the way forward.

I have regular catch-ups with police to keep in touch with what’s happening locally, and have also involved local groups to help keep all parts of the community working together.

This is what I was trying to communicate in the broader discussion I had when I made the comments, and I apologise profusely for the anger and hurt those comments have caused within sections of the community.

Since I was given the privilege of being elected to this role in 2019, I have worked incredibly hard to support the Indigenous community in any way I can, and that support will continue.

Dugald Saunders, Member for Dubbo