The chatter in the garden city this week was the shameless $4000 junket by city councillor Gail Sherriff who took a ratepayer funded trip to California to study a sandcastle event, building on her record of similar explorations while on full pay.The fallo
The chatter in the garden city this week was the shameless $4000 junket by city councillor Gail Sherriff who took a ratepayer funded trip to California to study a sandcastle event, building on her record of similar explorations while on full pay.
The fallout is seriously shifting the sands under mayor Bob Parker’s attempt at re-election, even though he keeps reminding everyone that his rival, MP Jim Anderton will be double dipping if he wins and continues in Parliament.
But the sand castle trip has resonance, even more than all the other controversies aroused by council – the $17 million Henderson property purchases, the interesting funding arrangements of the $113 million civic building, buying Ellerslie flower show, raising social housing rents 24%, not to forget the mayor and mayoress enjoying morning coffee and muffins with the chief executive on the ratepayer purse etc etc.
It’s the old adage – rorting the people of easily comprehended relatively small amounts is sure political suicide.
