Democracy is superior to dictatorships
The desire of Mayor Webber and some Western Bay District councillors to introduce Maori wards was roundly trounced by a district-wide referendum which clearly showed that citizen and ratepayer views were very different from the aspirations of the mayor.
Having lost that round, the same
team is looking at getting rid of the five democratically elected community boards and substitute them with community committees which will be made up of appointments made solely by the mayor's team.
Should this backdoor choice of representation based on mayor/councillor choice, democracy will be gone and, in my opinion, Mayor Webber will have achieved his personal wish for unelected persons to grace his council table.
