CODE OF SILENCE

Charles Sturt Council will consider in confidence a report dealing with the Ombudsman’s recommendations regarding suggested breaches of the Council’s own “Council Member Code of Conduct Policy”. Assorted behaviours of Councillors “K”, “P”, “A”, “G”(two counts), “M” (three counts) and Councillor “B” were raised as the subject of concerns by the Ombudsman. The Council report however advises that no action be pursued in the matter of “A” and “G” on the grounds that they are no longer members of the Charles Sturt Council. This recommendation, if adopted by the Council at its December 12th meeting, will have the consequence of clearing these former members ex gratia if they should present themselves for public election on Charles Sturt or any other Council in the future. It is the same as saying “Let bygones be bygones”. More serious is the secrecy provision that the Council report recomends – that the whole matter be dealt with confidentially. This is obviously incongruent with open and accountable government, in as much as it has been used as a cover-all to conceal the administrative methods Council is proposing to follow, not just personal details which do deserve consideration. For example, the public is given no information as whether the suggested breaches of Code of Conduct Policy have been classified Level One or Level Two, or whether they have been classified in any manner at all. If they have been classified as level two breaches, they must, according to the Council’s Code, be assessed by an independent body and that this assessment, along with proposed remedies from the independent investigator, should be presented to Council for consideration. The electors have been given no information on any of this. Nor, under the recommendation going to Council, will we ever hear if any of the Alphabetic Councillors have been found to have breached the code, and if so, who they are. Next time you cast your vote - if you are worried at all by the Ombudsman’s findings that is - you will have to vote for a candidate who was not on Council from 2006 to 2010, as this may well be the only way of holding councillors to account. Resident "C"