DHB candidates missed out

South Canterbury District Health Board election candidates were not invited to any of the public meetings recently held for people to meet election hopefuls, it has emerged.

The board’s incumbent chairman, Murray Cleverley, said board candidates had been asked to speak at the meet the candidates meetings in previous years.

However, this was the first time he could recall that they had not.

‘‘It may be because there are too many standing.’’

With 14 people vying for seven publicly elected and four ministerappointed positions on the board, Cleverley thought meeting organ- isers may have felt it would take too long for everyone to have their say.

‘‘I think the community is satisfied with the standard of care [the SCDHB offered] so they have become complacent,’’ he said.

If members of the public were dissatisfied with the board’s performance they would be asking for the board members to make statements.

‘‘People who are unsatisfied are very vocal,’’ he said.

Cleverley said he was lucky to have competent board members and hoped the new board would have a good mixture of ages, genders and different types of people.

‘‘A work.’’ good balance makes it

South Canterbury Chamber of Commerce president John Cannell said the chamber’s meet the candidates meeting had been focused on the business community.

‘‘It was about the size of numbers [standing for the DHB] and the issues were not as relevant to the business community as the [community boards and council] were.’’

Grey Power Timaru president and zone six director Denise Fitzgerald confirmed health board candidates, with Temuka and Pleasant Point ward candidates, had been invited to a meeting in Temuka next week.

She was unsure as to which candidates had indicated they would attend.