Councillors need time: ratepayers’ group
Baw Baw Shire Ratepayers and Citizens’ Association has dismissed a petition calling for the council to be replaced by an administrator as “vexatious, mischievous and without substance”.
The association says the new councillors should be given time to address problems at the council before outside help is called in.
The petition, presented in State Parliament this month by the Member for Narracan, Gary Blackwood, was led by Warragul businessman Andy Unstead and signed by 230 people.
It claimed that the council’s executive team was not providing basic services and accountability.
“Increasingly it appears that the executive team at Baw Baw Shire are dictating the direction of the council and its expenditure and not giving local elected councillors a say in how funds are used,” the petition stated.
“Continually shire staff and the executive are ignoring the local community by failing to properly invest in areas such as roads, footpaths and other community assets.”
The chairman of the BBSRCA, Geoff Anderson, wrote to Mr Blackwood saying the association had been unaware of the petition until it was reported in The Gazette.
“It was considered that a few hundred signatures fell far short of being representative of the ratepayer body.”
“The meeting resolved to inform the Minister [of Local Government] that the association believes the intent of the petition was vexatious, mischievous and without substance.
“Further, given the present situation where Baw Baw Shire councillors have only weeks ago been sworn in, it is considered unreasonable that, in this short time, they be held accountable for corporate actions.”
Before presenting the petition to Parliament, Mr Blackwood told the Gazette the new council had a lot of work to do “given the customer satisfaction survey results”.
“I would hope the new council and councillors will take control and provide the direction that the chief executive officer needs to address the concerns.”
The Gazette sought to interview the council’s chief executive officer, Helen Antsis, on the points raised in the petition and Mr Blackwood’s comments but she declined to respond.
The association’s letter to Mr Blackwood stated that petitioners would be better advised to address complaint to the State Government rather than the council.
“Baw Baw Shire Council shares the issues facing all rural municipalities of: (i) diminishing levels of State Government funding; (ii) increasing levels of transfer of State Government responsibilities to the local level; and (iii) a Local Government Act with limited provision for council control of activities.”