Opinions - 2018 (Vol 3) - Bega Valley Shire Residents & Ratepayers Association

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turning ignorance to bliss …

The association believes that council works very hard to minimise the publication of any information that could reflect negatively on council, its staff or elected councillors, in particular when it comes to breaches of its Code of Conduct.

Of course, as the level of meaningful information on the activities of government becomes less freely available, residents, ratepayers & taxpayers will have less reason to question its activities & the behaviour of our so-called “representatives”.

Perhaps ignorance will be bliss?

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real world simulated environments …

The association believes that the Member for Bega & his colleague are seriously deluded if they believe that their much-vaunted “Connected Learning Centres” can & will deliver the same world class educational outcomes that have been delivered by a generation of dedicated TAFE teachers.

It simply beggars belief that the Minister responsible for TAFE can wander around the place making nonsensical claims such as the new facility will incorporate “real world simulated environments” & expect to be taken seriously.

To suggest that students can acquire the complex skills & knowledge necessary to attain professional qualifications & meet the vocational needs & requirements for employment in agriculture, childhood education, nursing & trades such as bricklaying, carpentry, electrical refrigeration & plumbing, without the benefit of professional teaching, is to suggest that the community should be happy to hand out driving licences to teenagers who have never actually driven a car on the road.

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through a looking glass …

A little over a month ago, the association announced its participation in a collaborative program with like-minded community groups in Victoria, including the East Gippsland Community Action Group, to push back against concerted efforts by governments at all levels, particularly local government, to further restrict the availability of information to the public.

The association detailed its struggle with council last month, highlighting at the same time the failure of other government institutions such as ICAC, the NSW Ombudsman, the Office of Local Government (OLG) & even the Information & Privacy Commission (IPC) to bring accountability to council.

In the case of some Victorian councils however, the difficulty in obtaining information is not limited to just ordinary residents & ratepayers. It seems that even elected councillors in Victoria are being refused access to information held in council records, unless council bureaucrats deem that it relates to an issue immediately before council.

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none so blind …

The association was delighted to be in attendance at the meeting of the Southern Joint Regional Planning Panel (SJRPP) in Bega last Thursday night when the panel determined to reject the Development Application for the proposed Frogs Hollow Recreational Flying School.

In voicing their opposition, council officials criticised the developer for not having assessed the social, environmental & economic impacts of the proposal on the community, while the Member for Bega cited the need for the government’s investment in Moruya & Merimbula Airports to be protected.

While the association agrees with those criticisms, it also believes that it would be wrong to ignore the blatant hypocrisy evidenced by the those same officials in refusing to initiate the same social, environmental & economic impact assessments of the state & federal government funded expansion of Merimbula Airport.

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on openness & transparency …

Christmas came early this year for Merimbula Tourism via the success of recent fundraising activities to underwrite the estimated $100K fit-out cost of its proposed new Visitor Information Centre (VIC) in Merimbula.

So it was that the Member for Bega took the opportunity to pledge $25,000 from the State Government, while Merimbula RSL & Club Sapphire both promised $5,000 each. Those pledges came on top of a $25,000 contribution from ratepayers via council, a further rumoured fit-out incentive worth $20,000 from Robert Green & a $22,000 contribution from the members of Merimbula Tourism themselves; all totalling more than the $100,000 target.

While the association extends its Congratulations to all involved in this successful community fundraising effort to underwrite the creation of a new VIC in Merimbula, it remains concerned at the continuing refusal by Merimbula Tourism to open its books to public scrutiny.

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same old, same old …

Speculation over the possible sale of former Fairfax Media regional newspapers, including the Bega District News, the Merimbula News Weekly & the Eden Magnet, has continued unabated since the takeover of Fairfax by Nine went ahead.

Doubtless there will be many in the Bega Valley who will be concerned about the uncertain future of our local newspapers, just as there will be others who think they simply won’t be missed, given the parochial or partisan nature of what passes for journalism these days.

Would Fairfax be missed? Would “Our ABC” be missed? Hardly, in our view.

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lies of convenience …

Over the past couple of weeks, the association has shone a light on the dishonest behaviour of council in publishing false financial information as part of its 2017-2018 Audited Financial Statements & the self-serving & misleading comments made by senior council management on council’s performance.

Council has still not responded to the association’s request for clarification regarding the information included in the 2017-2018 Audited Financial Statements, contrary to its obligations under the Local Government Code of Accounting Practice and Financial Reporting.

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just keeping-up appearances …

Amongst the more interesting reports tabled at council’s ordinary meeting this week was the Mid-Term Councillor Update by Cr McBain.

At the beginning of her report, Cr McBain reminded residents & ratepayers that at the Mayoral Election meeting held in September, 2016, she had committed to working with councillors to provide that review, which would “look at what we had said we would work on, what we have done & the focus for the second half of the term”.

Sensational.

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