Craig Little: Wairoa won't believe propaganda

Craig Little

I'm usually more measured and considered in my commentary, but my blood is boiling right now for the people of Wairoa because, once again, we're being overlooked and our opinion is of little importance to the Local Government Commission (LGC) and others. I'm sick and tired of others assuming Wairoa is a walkover, because we are certainly not. We are a tough and resilient community, capable of standing on our own two feet.

I think the latest releases from the LGC are an insult and push a predetermined outcome for our region, particularly the MWH report, which should have been peer-reviewed prior to publication so that the inconsistencies (which MWH agree could have been corrected) could have been properly addressed.

The latest releases by the LGC have similarities to a propaganda campaign. Here we have Basil Morrison, Lawrence Yule and Rebecca Turner circling the wagons and attempting to justify Hastings' debt, by inferring that it has been spent on prudent infrastructure, whilst other councils have neglected their responsibilities. If this was so obvious, you would wonder why it hasn't been brought up before.

Now, apparently, the plan to ring-fence both existing debt and assets will seal the deal and secure our future. Do we really think our rates are going to stabilise or that the residents of debt-ridden areas like Hastings will eagerly further subsidise Wairoa district?

The reality is that even if Wairoa and other outlying areas don't have a significant rate rise, we will just go without. This reorganisation into a super city will take the "local" out of local government.

I'm no conspiracy theorist, but I find the timing of the release of this report all very interesting and am surprised that the LGC would use the services of MWH, who also undertake work for the HDC.

The release goes on to mention that Wairoa and Napier aren't basically up to standard with their infrastructure. What are we comparing - apples for apples? What the LGC forgot to mention is the fact that the majority (80 per cent) of Wairoa's infrastructure is roading, which after the recent NZTA funding assistance rate actually went up.

Wairoa's present 68 per cent will climb to an enviable 75 per cent. To put that in layman's terms, every dollar we spend, we receive up to 75c back from the Government.

How could this have been overlooked and not taken into account in their report?

It astounds me that despite all the wealth of information Wairoa has, and all the infrastructure research, no one came to Wairoa from MWH on behalf of the LGC to have a look at what is under the ground.

This is just another ill-informed attempt to sell a proposal for reorganisation that the LGC knew would be defeated by the people of Hawke's Bay if they didn't pull something out of the hat. They even tell you in their recent brochure drop to keep the brochure handy, in case you are one of 2000 residents phoned during March 2015, and asked for your views.

Isn't that telling people what to say in a supposedly "independent" survey?

If the latest LGC brochure had come out with a balanced report on the pros and cons and been based on an accurate underlying report, I would have been happy. But to bring a one-sided parochial brochure out before the independent telephone survey is beyond belief.

Like I said, this process has similarities to a propaganda campaign. It is an orchestrated attempt to force the unsupportable on the unwilling.

Despite appeals to the Local Government Minister and the Prime Minister, it appears that the LGC is answerable to no one.

In fact, it is not even subject to the usual Official Information procedures.

This is a region that has worked together for a long time and we are proud of our history.

We don't need some ideological agenda, pushed by A Better Hawke's Bay and Hastings District Council, that is meant to be a miracle cure for everything wrong in Hawke's Bay. This whole proposal is based on a template used in Auckland and elsewhere with devastating results.

You have seen how the LGC has tried to bulldoze this through, not listening to the communities of Hawke's Bay - and this may be an indication of how this grand reorganisation scheme will be run - one size fits all.

What the LGC has successfully done is create tension within the region, if you care about our future, please vote this proposal down.

-Craig Little is Mayor of Wairoa

-Business and civic leaders, organisers, experts in their field and interest groups can contribute opinions. The views expressed here are the writer's personal opinion, and not the newspaper's. Email: editor@hbtoday.co.nz