THE make-up of the Horsham Rural City, Northern Grampians, Hindmarsh, Yarriambiack, West Wimmera and Ararat Rural City councils for the next four years has been decided. To those elected, we offer our congratulations. Now the hard work starts.
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You have been chosen by your respective shires to offer people a strong and decisive voice. You are there to advocate on their behalf and ensure each council is acting and operating in the best interests of the ratepayers it represents.
Some of you are new to council, some are returning for another term. You are all leaders elected to make strong decisions for your communities. We want diverse and strong views and we expect you to bring your views, and those of the communities you represent, to the table. But we also expect you to have considered, respectful debate when a range of views are put forward.
Your job is not necessarily to persuade others to share your views. It is to listen, learn, understand. To connect and engage.
But leadership does not end there. You must ensure the reasoning of decisions is clearly communicated to the people who voted for you. Only in this way will council take the community with it as it gets down to work. As a councillor you are in a unique position to help shape the communities you live in. That responsibility carries its own set of challenges. You are expected to be readily available to your community, to attend events and you will need to quickly become familiar with council operations and governance.
You will make decisions that affect our roads, our public infrastructure and services.
Our councils face significant barriers in the years ahead. Ageing infrastructure, reduced income from rates, deteriorating road networks and increasing pressure from state government are all hurdles councils must address and overcome.
You will face pressure to make decisions you do not like and may not agree with.
It is vital you listen to the expert advice you are given, that you carefully consider all matters you deliberate upon and that you make your decisions for the benefit of all, not just a select few.
As a councillor, your ambition should be to see your community grow and prosper – to build a stronger community. To do this, you must rise above personality or politics or a fixation with single issues.
The decisions you make as councillors will determine the future of our communities.
