MELVILLE council has axed question time at its agenda briefing forums following another stoush with the Melville Residents and Ratepayers Association.
The MRRA submitted 17 questions to last Tuesday’s forum but the council sent them back unanswered.
Melville CEO Shayne Silcox says the forums are only designed to help councillors become more informed about upcoming issues, while veteran councillor Clive Robartson told the MRRA in a terse email question time was a “privilege”.
MRRA secretary Mark McLerie reckons the move breaches the rules of the forums which were introduced in 2006 by former CEO Eric Lumsden.
“He’s now got egg on his face,” Mr McLerie said of Dr Silcox. “He made a unilateral decision not to hear questions at the ABF, but he’s actually in breach of council.”
But after checking over the 2006 minutes and the governing regulations, the Chook’s given the coin toss to Dr Silcox, as there’s nothing compelling councils to hold question time at agenda forums, only prescribed council meetings.
MRRA president Gary Crawford sent an indignant email to councillors after the snub.
“From our perspective it appears that you may not like the nature and frequency questions the MRRA asks,” he wrote.
Cr Robartson gave a clipped response: “I think you have answered your own question. When a privilege is abused it is taken away.”
Councillors Cameron Schuster and Tim Barling both like question time, but say the MRRA is wasting it with pointed questions.
“I’m disappointed that questions aren’t able to be asked at the ABF’s anymore but I think I’m more disappointed in the MRRA asking a whole heap of questions that weren’t really relevant,” Cr Barling said.
by TRILOKESH CHANMUGAM
So, our City of Melville Council want to “Smurf” any resident, ratepayer or community group who dares to ask multiple questions that are relevant to ongoing Council matters. Is this not a right enshrined in the principles of democracy and the local government legislation? Not according to Melville Council. Unless that is, they happen to approve the questions as not being too difficult for them. Silcox is answerable to the Council; not the other way around and yet he makes a decision to pull the questions in direct contravention to the full Council Minutes of 1 July, 2006! Smurfing indeed.
The City of Melville’s CEO, Shayne Silcox, appears to be arbitrarily doing what he wants and refusing to answer thoughtful, logical and relevant questions to Council from concerned residents and ratepayers in contradiction to Council previous direction and practices.
Removing peoples right to ask questions of its government is an assault on our democratic process and rights!.
Cr Robartson, on behave of Council, stated that they supported removal of Question Time because the asking questions were a “privilege”; a privilege now lost as we had abuse it by asking too many questions. Really: does Council not know we live in a democratic society, did’nt we have an election to elect them?
Local government legislation and the operation of Council is a little complex; and the City does little to enlighten anyone on any issues. For the record we do not believe the Herald’s reporting on this matter was right in that the “coin toss” in fact should go to us, or at the very least get the Minister for Local Government to make an umpire’s call.
From our perspective Council, at its 18 July 2006 Council meeting, introduced the Agenda Briefing Forum format. Council did this by voting on a motion to change the existing meeting/committee meeting format. Included in the 12.1 C06/6022 – COUNCIL COMMITTEE STRUCTURE motion, as seconded by Mayor Russell Aubrey, was
D) THAT THE AGENDA FORUM BE:-
1. CHAIRED BY THE DEPUTY MAYOR;
2. OPEN TO THE PUBLIC;
3. SUBJECT TO THE PROVISIONS OF THE LOCAL GOVERNMENT ACT 1995 AND ASSOCIATED REGULATIONS IN TERMS OF PUBLIC QUESTION TIME, DEPUTATIONS AND THE GUIDELINES FOR “AGENDA FORUMS” PUBLISHED BY THE DEPARTMENT OF LOCAL GOVERNMENT AND REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT; AND
4. CONDUCTED IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CITY OF MELVILLE STANDING ORDERS LOCAL LAW 2003.
Councillors voted 11/1 in favour of the motion to include Question Time in the ABFs as if it were an ordinary council meeting. Question Time has been included in the ABF format continuously from 1 August 2006, and only ceased at the last ABF without notice. To the best of our knowledge there have been no Council motions passed to withdraw Question Time from the ABF format, we believe the directive came from the CEO and not Council. The Local Government legislation obligates Council to answer questions asked at council meetings.
Why did the CEO, Shayne Silcox, withdraw Question Time from the last ABF… .. perhaps he just did’nt like the questions and does not like public scrutiny? Since when did it become OK for the CEO to unilaterally decide not to comply with Council motions? If the CEO is calling the shots at the City why have Councillors?
This is not the first time the CEO has sought to direct “his” Council. Remember when he demanded to know why 3 Councillors did not vote the way he wanted in 2014? (https://heraldonlinejournal.com/2014/12/05/please-explain/). The CEO should be reminded that he is a public servant employed by Council. The CEO reports to Council; not the other way around.
Some of the Councillors, including Cr Schuster and Cr Barling, have indicated that the questions were too pointed or irrelevant. It is interesting that no one has thought to mentioned what the questions were; the City has not published them with the notes from the 6 September ABF. Council has not responded to our request for specific clarity as to why they did not like the MRRA’s questions.
It would be good if the Herald published the questions at the center of the storm so the community could make up its mind as to whether or not they are “irrelevant”.
There were 5 broad questions relating to:
1) CEO’s multiple pre-term contract renewals;
2) URBNSURF Wave Park proposal for the Melville Bowling Club site;
3) failure to enforce verge policies at a Blackwall Reach Pde Bicton property;
4) follow-up questions in relation to the City’s proposed Parking local laws; and
5) version control of published Council records (ie minutes of meetings).
If anyone wants a copy of the questions please email or call us.
Please do not hesitate to contact the MRRA at Melville.residents@outlook.com; 9330 4350 or at https://www.facebook.com/MelvilleResidentsRatepayersAssoc/