on openness & transparency …
Commenting in response to his election as Mayor of the Bega valley Shire, Cr Russell Fitzpatrick made it clear that the number one priority of council during his term would be to address the council's financial situation, including resolving questions around the historic management of council’s cash reserves.
The association welcomes Cr Fitzpatrick’s commitment, in particular as it has long campaigned for action by the elected council to rectify the ongoing failure by council management to properly manage the shire’s finances.
The association believes that for Cr Fitzpatrick’s commitment to mean anything, council must also embrace a genuine commitment to openness & transparency regarding council’s activities.
At time of writing the association has 10 items of correspondence awaiting a response from council, including one item that has been outstanding for 10 months, another outstanding for 13 months & a third outstanding for 17 months.
Given the refusal of council management to address its legitimate requests for information, as cited above, unfortunately, at this point in time, the association can have little confidence that its more recent inquiries will be afforded any better consideration.
While the association believes that Cr Fitzpatrick is genuinely committed to improving council’s performance, it also believes that he & his colleagues will need to do a whole lot more than simply mouth such claims, given the longstanding refusal of council management to accept accountability for its consistent under-performance.
John Richardson
Secretary/Treasurer
Bega Valley Shire Residents & Ratepayers Association
Tel: 0264945669
Email: secretary@begavalleyshireratepayers.asn.au
Website: http://www.begavalleyshireratepayers.asn.au