Letters: Former councillor says thanks to the community

Former Tauranga city councillor said he put his heart and soul into doing the best for the community. Photo / File

A big thank you to all those that supported me over my three terms.

To those who did and those who didn't, I have put my heart and soul into doing the very best I could for our community.

My regrets are I could not do more to solve the homelessness in Tauranga or to do more to help the businesses in the CBD while the city is going through a five-year restructure.

Another area that needed improving was relationships with the community, staff and our sub-regional partners.

With our new chief executive and general managers in place that work has already started. Our wonderful city isn't broken, just going through some difficult growing pains.

It's been a privilege to serve our community and I wish those who will look after our city for the next three years all the best.

Terry Molloy
Former city councillor

Didn't vote? Don't complain

The voter turnout for the 2019 local body elections all over country seems to have been disappointing and in the Tauranga electorate, whilst being marginally up on the last election, was still just 40.3 per cent -- resulting in 59.7 per cent of the electorate not voting.

It would appear to me that we have ended up with exactly the councillors that we deserve and that people who did not vote now have absolutely nothing to complain about as they didn't even bother to express their democratic rights by voting.

It is sad that people do not seem to accept, or realise, that in many instances decisions made by our locally elected representatives often affect and impact on us to a greater degree than decisions made by central government yet still they do not bother to vote.

Demands for online voting, in order to increase the turnout, should only be considered if it can be proven that the system is 100 per cent safe from being hacked and under current conditions this appears unlikely.

So if you did not vote, do not complain and hopefully in three years' time you will realise the possible error of your ways and use your future vote wisely.

Mike Baker
Bethlehem

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