KEY POINTS:
Professional firefighter-turned-Rodney deputy mayor John Kirikiri yesterday tried to put out a bushfire of rebellion in the district's western ward.
He had upset western councillor Grev Walker by threatening to seek to remove him as chairman of the finance and audit committee after Mr Walker led a revolt against the council's proposed rates rise and made submissions opposing it as a ratepayer.
"I said to Grev 'You can't be poacher and gamekeeper'," Mr Kirikiri told the Herald yesterday.
There was concern that if Mr Walker took part in deliberations on the rates increase there would be repercussions from the Audit Office.
This could in turn affect the council's desire to upgrade its Standard & Poor's credit rating to "Triple A".
But Mr Walker took no part when the council voted on Thursday for a rates rise of 9.9 per cent for serviced rural townships and 9.8 per cent for those which do not have water and wastewater services.
"He made the decision himself and I have a lot of respect for that, because the pressure was on from not only myself and the mayor and the chief executive but also the Auditor-General," Mr Kirikiri said.
"I have taken advice and spoken to people I respect and I have withdrawn from actively seeking to remove him as chairman," he said.
