puff: puff 493 Wheeler's Corner

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Wheeler’s CornerÓ

Connecting Citizens Who Care

"Broadcast every Thursday at 11.45am on Access 999AM" Contact Peter at wheeler@inspire.net.nz

14 12th April 2007

This Week: 1. Gordon Cruden email explodes: 2. Council [staff] nickers in twist over land sale: 3. My God has the last word…and a request.

1. I guess most readers of Wheeler’s Corner know who Cr. Gordon Cruden is? He came third of three Councillors elected to represent Hokowhitu citizens on the PNCC. He is the eldest member of council and most likely the most verbose. His self-proclaimed knowledge of the Acts, rules and procedures are worthy of note. He is the highest paid Councillor because he chairs the hearings committee and gets paid extra per hearing plus he gets paid for being on the Airport Company Board which is fully owned by the council. He had been a councillor in earlier years and this time around is on his second term. He hates rising rates but each year under his watch rates have risen by at least twice the rate of inflation.

A code of conduct charge has been lodged against him. That charge relates to an email he sent to the Mayor, Councillors, and staff. A copy was sent to Wheeler’s Corner readers’ early last year. In it Mr. Cruden made some wild statements about persons named ‘Godfrey, Higgins and Mechen, these people are in fact Hokowhitu Ward Committee members, Dr. Jonathan Godfrey, Dr. Colin Higgins and Maryanne Mechen but his main vitriol was saved for Dr. Chris Teo-Sherrell. It was Chris who lodged the complaint on the grounds that Mr. Cruden’s remarks were aggressive, offensive and represented abusive conduct [behaviour]. The Deputy Mayor [Cr. Hornblow] says that because this complaint will be heard in part two [in secret] Cr. Gordon Cruden can’t make a public statement on this matter. While true in one sense it is not true in another. Public comment can be made at anytime. In the only other case of a similar nature [‘Wylie Vs Wheeler]. Wheeler, was only too willing to have the case heard in Part One [Public can Attend]. Although staff member Paul Wylie said he was willing to have his complaint heard in public he would not do so to protect key staff who signed a pre-written statement threatening industrial action if the complaint was heard in public. So the council was pressured into agreeing to a Part Two hearing and the sixty supporters of Wheeler were forced from the Council Chamber. Cr. Gordon Cruden is in same position as Mr. Wheeler was and could like Mr. Wheeler do the decent thing and go public. Or will he be like Paul Wylie and find some staff to hide behind? The council has delayed justice to Chris Teo-Sherrell for ten months while it attempted to conceal the fact that the email even existed. Ten months ago this whole matter could have been mediated if Cr. Gordon Cruden had bothered to explain to the Hokowhitu Ward Committee the reasons for his email outburst instead of treating them with disrespect and contempt by walking out of the meeting.

Here is what Wheeler’s Corner said back in April of last year:

‘Cr. Gordon Cruden in an email suggested to other councillors, the Mayor and Paul Wylie. He stated that some members of the Hokowhitu Ward Committee and unnamed members of the Awapuni Ward committee: has formed an unholy alliance. He also accuses the present Chairperson Jonathan Godfrey, the Deputy Chairperson Colin Higgins and hard working ward member Maryanne Mechen of campaigning to increase rates! And steam rolling agenda items…He did this it would seem because Chris Teo-Sherrell, another Hokowhitu Ward member made a submission to the LTCCP on his own behalf. It should be noted that he [Cruden] has voted for massive rate increases over the last four years and this year has opposed the Mayors’ move to get rates down to 5.5% rather than the 7.5% recommended. Some time ago Maryanne Mechen made strong comments about Cr. Gordon Cruden relating to what she considered to be falsehoods in the council chamber… Councillors can I’m sure remember the dramatic occasion as do the public who were present… She later requested that a code of conduct charge be brought against Cr. Gordon Cruden. But was persuaded by the CEO and the council legal advisor that it wasn’t possible because of ‘some strange’ legal rulings. Note also the disrespectful language. The lack of nerve in naming the Awapuni members concerned, is he writing about the Chairperson Annette Nixon or Pat Hickson or Meredith McKenzie or John Bos or even myself or does he mean Cr. Kelly or Claridge or even Cr. Broad? [His good tight eight mate]. If this is not cause for a code of conduct hearing [3.1 Relationships with other members] then nothing is. One last point, Cr. Cruden states, "Hokowhitu Ward’s policy…" He knows as do we all that Hokowhitu doesn’t make policy council does that! A copy of the email text is printed below. [Dropped into my letterbox on Tuesday night and I confirmed that councillors received it] It reads:

"Heather and Councillors’

I agree that this is another attempt by Sherrell for self-sought publicity. His conduct is both frivolous and vexatious. He with Godfrey, Higgins and Mechen have made the Hokowhitu Ward's policy unrepresentative of the views of that ward. This includes campaigning to increase Hokowhitu rates - but according to Godfrey at a recent meeting, in the interests of Hokowhitu ratepayers! They repeatedly attempt to steam roll issues through by exhaustion by keeping meetings going to 11pm and later by which time most with contrary views have gone home. On major issues they have formed an unholy "alliance" (for the purposes of this email with a small "a") with the more extreme members and former members of the Awapuni Ward committee. Let's quickly put this to bed by rejecting Mr. Sherrell's ambition to exploit the important consultation process for his personal purposes. It would be irresponsible for us to waste ratepayers’ money and staff time, processing a wholly frivolous request.

Gordon Cruden"

Now you have read the email you decide if Cr. Gordon Cruden has broken the code of conduct. Give him a ring on 354-1916 or email him at crudengn@clear.net.nz to have a chat about this issue.

2. A Mayoral Forum that wasn’t a Mayoral Forum was held at midday on Tuesday April 10 2007. Councillors and a few members of the public listened to departing Clare Hadley weakly attempt to explain how the sale of the Tennis Club land on the corner of Park Rd and Fitzherbert Ave was vital for our city. This valuable land had according to her become a burden on the ratepayers of our fair city. How staff had decided to recommend to an eager bunch of tight eight councillors that the land should be sold off was unknown to her, nor was she aware if or how those using the land felt about this recommendation. For it would appear that they were never contacted and were ignored until the Awapuni Ward Committee spoke out on their behalf. It was obvious at this so-called forum that Cr. Wall was eager to see it sold as every time Clare Hadley made a comment she would nod her head and smile at young Clare. Anyone else who made any sort of comment about keeping the land for public use was greeted by a shaking head and deep frowns and unintelligent mutterings. A couple of so-called facts really confused the issue. The sale of the land has already been factored into this years rate increase according to Clare Hadley, and if the land is not sold rates will have to rise so as to collect another 2.5 million. So the rates increase will need to be around 9% to 9.5% rather than the 7.5 to 8.5% already announced. This is doubly strange when Steve Maharey told parliament that the sale of the land would save ratepayers’ .50 of the yearly rate bill…who is telling the truth Steve Maharey or Clare Hadley? What happened to the millions gained from the sale of the Railway Land and a part of the Linklater block? Whilst Paul Wylie might have departed the scene we are clearly paying the price for five years of spin…and half truths.

3. My God was in having a quick dose of caffeine at the McDonalds café the other day when a little bird flew in and whispered in her ear that a councillor has moved to Marton to live. Are you allowed to be a councillor if you don’t live in the city? Do you have to retain property as a ratepayer to retain your seat on council? I told my God that I didn’t know the answer to that question…so if you know the answer could you let me know or if you are on talking terms with my God you could let her know direct… Cheers I hope you had a great Easter.

Peter J Wheeler

Wheeler@inspire.net.nz

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