SEPARATION

of powers has been a grave and, indeed, history making question in Queensland at times.

Local Council is no exception to controversy, when the distinction, in democracies, between those brought into office by election and those qualified to give frank and fair informed advice to them, is perceived to be on the wane.

There was even a past dismissal of Council in the nearby Tweed Shire and, indeed, this occurred in a former Gold Coast City Council also, when an administrator was sent in.

Controversy, with regard to the GC community expectation that, under our Westminster System of Government, the independent role of our Chief Officer, heading our team of community-funded advisors, was at its height after the abrupt dismissal of the late Dr Doug Daines in 1996.

In COVID times the public gallery is now not filled, as it was then, with locals throwing flowers, as happened as that popular Chief Executive, trusted by many in the community, left Council,.

However, there are perceptions that there might be something rotten in this local area with the unusual “loss” or “walk out” of three of our senior publicly employed officers (GCB, 11/8, ‘Council Review of City Plan changes after shock departure of City Planners’).

Currently there seems to be a lack of transparency re: our Chief Executive Officer role. Who gets the say and who is saying it are well questions the employers , the community may be asking. (GCB, 14/8, ‘Gold Coast CEO job advertised’)

This and the perceived ‘ditching’ of some of the planning requests of local neighbourhoods in favour of those perceived to be favoured above the wider community is likely to cause civic reaction.

This and the existence of an internal reporting process on those town planning potential amendments. Strange as it may seem, some of our elected councillors were apparently not apprised of or unaware that this ‘report’ was even happening. (GCB, 13/8, ‘We want to get it right – concern for future planning’)

Is Australian democracy, which our past generations defended, a dying swan?