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22/09/2005

Monash Councillors contempt for the democratic process

At last night’s Council meeting Jeanne Solity sought to raise a motion under Urgent Business that the Council money given to the Mayor Dimopoulos, and Crs Banerji and Lake to returned to Council since the legal action it was originally provided for no longer applied.

The Mayor and Crs Banerji and Lake declared a pecuniary interest and vacated the chamber. With the exception of Cr Solity, what followed was an extraordinary display from the remaining Councillors of contempt for democratic process. Cr McCall, who was elected to take the chair on the departure of the Mayor, insisted that the motion to hear Cr Solity’s Urgent Business, have a seconder before it could be heard by the remaining Councillors.

Not one Councillor came forward to second that the motion be heard .

It should be pointed out that this seconding was for the motion to be heard. It was not seconding in support of the subject matter of the Urgent Business. The failure of Crs Bouziotis, Smith, Little and McCall, in the opinion of the MRA showed those Councillors clear contempt for the notion of giving a fellow Councillor the opportunity to be heard. As such, it was a denial and contempt of democratic process.  

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