Wyndham council must realise it’s not unusual to seek answers, says Kevin Hillier
You’re all familiar with the life of a mushroom: kept in the dark. By that definition, Wyndham ratepayers are mushrooms.
Several organisations, including this newspaper, have made freedom of information requests about the process in the naming of Eagle Stadium. All were denied, as it was “not in the public interest” to know how this came about. Of course, how council and its officers came up with the name, what other names were considered, who was spoken to or who had a say is of no interest at all to the Wyndham community.
Nothing could be further from the truth or from reality. The community uproar screams that not only do we care, and not only are we interested, but we want it changed. The immediate questions everyone asks are: What are they hiding? Who are they protecting? It’s not unreasonable to ask those questions.
The more serious matter here is the council’s attitude. Is it willing to be transparent in its dealing with ratepayers, the general public and media, or just when it suits it? We need to define what is in the public interest. I think it’s pretty obvious, but perhaps an independent body may be best placed to decide these clearly touchy matters.
Where is City of Wyndham CEO Kerry Thompson in all this? Before she walks out of the Civic Centre for the last time soon, she needs to address this issue and do something about it. That may be her legacy to this city and its ratepayers.
I keep telling my 10-year-old son we all make mistakes. And there’s no doubt in my mind council has made a big one here. But will they be big enough to admit it then fix it? This is not a witch hunt. I’m purely asking that they do their jobs, which is to represent Wyndham ratepayers.
We have a magnificent new sports stadium, which will be part of our community for decades, yet no one is talking about it in those terms because of this very fixable situation. Seems a pity. Your thoughts are welcome.
If you have any news or events, let me know at kevin@howdypartnersmedia. com.au
