March 2009
Almost a year since local elections here, when I and many others made observations on the election of BNP Councillors. Then, there was debate about how BNP policies might affect Rotherham and concerns shown by some.
As it has transpired since then, the concerns most prevalent within the town (particularly, from personal experience, in Maltby, Bramley, Wickersley) are the blatant underhand doings of RMBC and their Labour councillors and the awful detrimental effect this is having on the community.
Maltby Town Council is commonly known as a pantomime. The chairman is under investigation after allegations have been made against him by previous Labour councillors who now purport to be independent. The true independent councillors are being hounded out of their positions by false accusations – some by intimidation and aspersions about their religious beliefs. Verbal and physical assaults have been made on members of the public by MTC councillors. The Chief Executive at RMBC pass the buck in any way that they can and the electorate is patronised by their attitude.
Wentworth Valley Area Assembly, which used to be democratically run, has had it’s Labour “renegade” chairman removed and a new (Labour) chair and vice-chair put in place without the approval or knowledge of it’s members and decisions are made against voted proposals.
A multi – million pound private business venture is “proposed” which affects all Maltby Schools. This potentially leaves our children’s education being sponsored by a company who have been running since last year and sell computer software. Only statutory consultation has been done, leaving the majority of parents and the community with one week to consider and digest the implications of this which is against the advice of all four teaching unions.
There are constant reports of the council spending millions on private projects whilst public services are cut or removed.
And more………..
Reports in local papers bring attention to more and more instances of a body which shows little regard for the people it is entrusted to serve. When the Chief Executive of Rotherham Council is riding rough shod over the electorate, likewise Cabinet Members, where do we turn?
In “Welcome to Everytown: a journey into the English mind “ (2007) Julian Baggini takes Rotherham to be a statistical microcosm of England. He spent six months living in the district "to understand the English mind, what we think, what we believe, what we want and what we value".
We live here. We know what we think, what we believe, what we want and what we value. We hoped that the people we elected felt the same and had our interests at heart.
How wrong we appear to have been and how sad if Rotherham really is an example of “Everytown”.
