Not much ado about nothing

If this blogger and others hadn’t got stuck into the Council for doing a backflip on its previous decision to preserve and restore Zinneckar’s House, what would they have to show for the past six months?

Not much more than a few street name changes and some financial housekeeping.

They should thank us for making it look like they actually had an issue to deal with.

At the most recent Council meeting on April 24, things were settling down and back to normal.

First, there was question time and a few curly questions to deal with from myself, William Moyes and Bert Reynolds.

Then there were some decisions to make: allow a lunch to be held on a bridge?, endorse a couple of nominations for committees?,  accept the monthly financial statements?,  allow a variation on the some funds for road projects? and rubber stamp some resolutions from the standing committee.

Needless to say, they all got the nod, with every councillor voting in favour of every recommendation from the officers without a word of discussion or (heaven forbid) dissent.  Nothing more strenuous for the councillors than some page-turning and hand-raising.

It was all over in under an hour and would have taken less than half an hour, but for those pesky questions.

They all then adjourned to the room next door for catered meal and free drinks on the ratepayers.

I want to know…  WHAT ARE THEY DOING THERE???  WHERE ARE THEIR IDEAS, THEIR PLANS TO TAKE THIS COMMUNITY FORWARD??

We ratepayers are paying each of them around $290 per meeting and are getting no ideas, no vision, no scrutiny.

Most of the current councillors have not moved a single motion of their own this year.  Some have never done it! As outlined above they go through entire meetings without uttering a single word!

Surely, we deserve better. That is what this blog is about. 

Please vote for change at the current by-election and the normal election later this year.

(Electing past-president Brian Moore’s wife Joanne Moore or nasty former councillor Stephanie Devanay’s husband Peter Quinby is likely to ensure nothing more than continued robotic endorsements of Council officers’ recommendations.)

What lies beneath...

There is something very strange going on.  Brian Moore resigns the Council Presidency and his seat, citing a conflict of interest, but then his wife Joanne nominates for the seat, thereby re-creating the conflict.  At the same time one of Mr and Mrs Moore's closest friends,  Peter Quinby also nominated for the Council by-election.

Quinby's wife Stephanie Devany quit council a couple of years ago after a stint characterised by her intemperate, foul-mouthed outbursts.

So two uninspired and jaded councillors quit, but then their spouses want to jump back in. Why the sudden renewed interest within this chardonnay-sipping clique in getting seats on Council?

Could it have anything to do with Mr Moore's other role as a member of the WA Salaries and Allowances Tribunal?  It is known that this body has recently been considering the issue of how much councillors should be paid.  This was the reason Mr Moore gave for quitting, given the obvious conflict of interest.

Now, does Mr Moore know something about changes to councillor remuneration that he might have shared with his wife and friends, prior to any public announcement?

If he did, and if that's why his wife and friends are standing, it is a very poor reflection.

From one conflict to another

Speaking (below) of people who should understand conflicts of interest, what about Mr and Mrs Brian Moore?

Earlier this year Mr Moore abruptly vacated his seat on Council, citing a conflict of interest between this role and his position on the Salaries and Allowances Tribunal, which sets remuneration for councillors.  He saw that he should not be helping to decide how much he should be paid as a councillor and President.

But now his wife has nominated for the Council by-election.  If he should not be helping to work out how much he should be getting paid as a councillor, nor should he be doing so when his wife may benefit!

If she gets in, will he resign from the Salaries and Allowances Tribunal?  And if he does, what was the point of his resignation from Council?  Or are they simply seeking to establish a family political dynasty, like Bridgetown's answer to Bill and Hillary Clinton? (Except Bill provided leadership and Hillary has class.)

Read my lips... A-c-c-o-u-n-t-a-b-i-l-i-t-y

It is lamentable that new Council President Tony Pratico, despite having been on Council for several years, does not appear to understand fundamental concepts of governance, such as conflicts of interest.

For as long as I can remember and as recently as April 11, he has consistently taken part in debates and voted on motions concerning the management of Yornup Hall, despite the obvious conflict raised by his membership of both the Yornup Hall Management Committee and the private group which was allowed to run the hall and its finances, the Yornup Hall Committee.  In one case, he was the only councillor to vote against a motion that the CEO should check whether the arrangements regarding the hall were legal. (It turned out they were not.)

But a strange thing happened at the most recent Council meeting on April 24...  Mr Pratico declared this conflict of interest.  Cr Hodson, who is also on the Management Committee, declared his interest and the Shire CEO's executive assistant, Mrs Norris also declared an interest as a member of the private committee.

So what brought on this sudden burst of propriety?

I suspect it may have has something to do with me lodging an official complaint a couple of weeks ago about Mr Pratico's failure to declare his conflicts on this issue.

Check out his record below...

Failure to declare an impartiality interest  (three instances)  Council meeting 25/2/2010.

Mr Pratico took part in the debate and voted against the following motion:

Item: C.06/0210  That the instrument of Appointment for the Yornup Hall Management Committee be withdrawn.

Mr Pratico took part in debate and voted in favour of the following amendment:  That point 3 of C.24/0210 be deleted. (Censure of the Management Committee chairman)

Mr Pratico took part in debate and voted against C.24/0210  (Noting the Management Committee had breached its Instrument of Appointment)

At the time, he was a member of committee in question, the Yornup Hall Management Committee.

Failure to declare an impartiality interest.   Council meeting 24/6/2010

Mr Pratico took part in debate and voted against C.13/0610  That Council defer consideration of a request (from the Yornup Hall Committee) to replace jarrah weatherboards on the hall until Council received  and considered financial statements from the Yornup Hall Management Committee.

At the time, he was a member of both the Yornup Hall Committee and the Yornup Hall Management Committee.

Failure to declare an impartiality interest. (two instances) Council meeting 25/11/2010

Mr Pratico took part in the debate and voted against the following motion:

Item C.03/1110 (Part 1) That all budgeted expenditure on upgrades and improvements to the Yornup Hall and surrounds be suspended until it can be established that this publicly-owned asset is being managed in a way which allows proper scrutiny and provides accountability.

Mr Pratico also took part in debate and voted against the following motion:

C.03/1110 (Part 2)  That the CEO seek advice and provide a report to Council on the legality of the current arrangements in regard to management of this publicly owned asset and retention of hall hire fees by a private group, being the Yornup Hall Committee.

At the time he was chairman of the Yornup Hall Management Committee and a member of the Yornup Hall Committee.

   Failure to declare an impartiality interest.  Council meeting  28/2/2013

Cr Pratico voted in favour of the following motion:

Item C.02/0213  That Council request the CEO to investigate and report back to the April 2013 standing committee meeting on the possibility of leasing the Yornup Hall to the Yornup Hall (Community) Committee and consequential disbanding of the Yornup Hall Management Committee.

At the time he was a member of both the Yornup Hall Management Committee and the private Yornup Hall Committee.

 Failure to declare an impartiality interest.  Standing Committee meeting  11/4/2013

Cr Pratico took part in debate and voted in favour of Amendment and Substantive Motion dealing with  proposal to lease hall to Yornup Hall Committee - Item SC.05/0413

At the time, he was a member of both the Yornup Hall Management Committee and the private Yornup Hall Committee.