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Independent Rodney Local Board members have hit out at the Rodney First ticket saying its effective control of the board is undemocratic and lacks transparency.
Six members of the nine-member board are part of Rodney First, and Rodney First members hold the positions of board chair and deputy chair.
Each Rodney First member has signed a “Candidates Agreement” vowing to support the policies of Rodney First.
But independent board member, Brenda Steele, who represents the Kumeu subdivision, says that this state of affairs makes it really hard for independent members to get their views heard given Rodney First already had a set agenda.
“I find it very frustrating. I know that there are some long outstanding issues in this district and those will never be addressed under this board because you can’t break this voting bloc,” she says.
She adds that the process is not transparent because Rodney First members strategise together how to get their way at board meetings, independent of the rest of the board.
Ms Steele says operating in such a way is entirely inappropriate at local government level, which should be about hearing all points of view.
“For me it’s about letting everyone have the discussion and letting everyone be part of the decision making.”
She adds that the presence of Rodney First encouraged political deal-making that advanced the interests of the ticket and not necessarily those of the community.
“If you are part of Rodney First you end up working for Rodney First rather than the community you represent,” she says.
Earlier, deputy board chair and Rodney First member Phelan Pirrie confirmed to Mahurangi Matters that board member Louise Johnston had joined Rodney First last August on the understanding that she would support Rodney First objectives in return for Rodney First’s support for Ms Johnston’s objectives in her Dairy Flat subdivision.
Ms Steele’s views are echoed by fellow independent board member Colin Smith who agrees that the situation is hampering the ability of the board to do its job and represent the community.
But Board chair and Rodney First member Beth Houlbrooke says Ms Steele’s characterisation that the Board is operating inappropriately for local government is untrue.
She says 14 out of 21 Local Boards in Auckland Council have one political group holding the majority of positions on the board
“While a group of people standing on a particular policy platform may be new for Rodney, it has been the norm for the rest of Auckland for many years,” she says.
She adds that Rodney First agrees that there are some long-standing issues for Rodney and setting up the ticket was about trying to address them after years of neglect.
“As board chair last term, Brenda frequently expressed frustration at not being able to make progress on issues because getting nine independent board members to cooperate was like herding cats.”
Ms Houlbrooke says that Rodney needs a board that can get on with effecting change and tickets are an established way of achieving this.
Moreover, she says the development of the Local Board Plan in 2017 has been done with the whole board’s involvement.
“Everyone was involved in the discussion and decision-making,” she says.
“The suggestion that members are working for Rodney First and not the community is unfortunate and untrue. Residents voted for us because they want to see action on these issues and we promised that we would work together to deliver for Rodney.”
A third independent board member, Tessa Berger, declined to comment specifically on the issues raised by Ms Steele but did say her voice would not be silenced “regardless of the political landscape.”
The Rodney First members of the local board are Beth Houlbrooke (board chair), Phelan Pirrie (deputy chair), Louise Johnston, Cameron Brewer, Brent Bailey and Allison Roe. The independents are Brenda Steele, Colin Smith and Tessa Berger.
