" Let's Work Together " by Hon John Carter.

Chris from Kerikeri District

John Carter's maxim appears not to be working. Or maybe he is talking specifically about only Council staff working together to the exclusion of the ratepayers?!!! It makes you wonder. Evidence? Well, we have already had serious cases of Council not really working together with the ratepayers and excluding some when we think back to the Ken Rintoul case ( what REALLY happened there ?). And then, recently, we've had the Waimate North residents up in arms over a huge shed that was consented on a site of National Heritage. Why weren't they notified and why was it permitted on this site anyway? It really makes you wonder what is going on.
Then we have had to have a meeting at Waipapa recently where 120 people turned out to challenge the proposed 'draconian ' changes to the dog control law and policies. It shows the depth of feeling on this matter that 120 people bothered to turn out. For so many years, everything seemed sweet on this matter. Nobody complained; everybody got on with their lives. Most dog owners acted responsibly . So what has radically changed to warrant the proposed 'draconian ' changes and why now? To a lot of people, Council are not using any common sense. The so-called consultation process leading up to the proposed changes have been described in the B.C as "faulty' not once but twice.
We have a Council staff member, Neil Miller, say that 6,500 letters were posted out to registered dog owners but only two people at the meeting said they had received them. Something smells here. Did you receive a letter in the post about this? We didn't. One could say that very few letters were indeed sent out and, if this is the case, why? Again, do Council really want ratepayers involved in cases like this? From the evidence so far, it seems likely that they want to act unilaterally as they are the 'experts.' BUT, they are not infallible. Instead of just 'hearing' what people want, they should act.
IF Council really are sincere about " working together" and " aim to collaborate " ( Doctor Dean Myburgh) with the ratepayers, the very people who pay their salaries, then they need to get off their high horse, admit that they do get things wrong, enlist the help(where necessary ) of the many experienced professionals 'out there' who could and would welcome a chance to get involved in decision making, then maybe, just maybe, the ratepayers would have more confidence and trust in Council. But there again maybe Council don't care. Sometimes one really wonder what is going on in the heads of some Council officials! There really seems to be a lack of common-sense at times.
As for the Submission Process, we haven't received any paperwork in the post that allows us to submit on matters that concern us and which we have a right to have our say, for ages. Sometimes , we see in the B.C " submissions welcomed " on this or that matter BUT not everybody gets the B.C and not everybody has access to a computer to access the FNDC website and even if thy can, they may not necessarily know what to do to submit on-line. If the submissions process is truly going to be transparent, then like the 6,500 letters that supposedly went out to registered dog owners, isn't it fair and just that we receive notification by post on matters that we could submit on?
Having said all this, are we really to believe that Council reads every submission that comes in front of them? How do we really know they look at every one and look at the merits of each one, and, even if they do read them, then what happens ?
But, hey, wasn't it good of Shuan Clarke, the new CEO to turn out. Must have been a tad inconvenient for him ,eh? Never mind, on $300,000+ per year, I would say that it is the least he could do. As for his statement, " we have heard you", that's as maybe, but I would guess that most of the dog owners that attended that meeting in Waipapa want a tad more reassurance that Council will get their act together, and sort it out and soon using a common sense approach and let's hope that future " faulty' consultation processes will be much fewer.
Council really need to up their game and be more transparent . Having said this, we can only live in hope as a FNDC local councillor recently told me that they
"are being obstructed in their desire to see more transparency from Council on a whole range of matters."