Parliamentary secretary for the Illawarra Gareth Ward is “at a loss” to explain a huge disparity in the number of council merger responses he has received from Shellharbour and Kiama residents.
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Mr Ward has been inundated by more than 1500 individual pieces of correspondence from Kiama residents, but “not even 70” have been received from people who call Shellharbour home.
Of the limited responses, most of them are in favour of merging Shellharbour and Wollongong city councils, he said. However, Shellharbour mayor Marianne Saliba has slammed Mr Ward for being “deathly silent” about her city and said the Kiama MP “owes it to his constituents in Shellharbour to look out for their best interests”.
The Kiama electorate has an enrolment of 53,653 people and about 14,000 of them live in the Shellharbour Local Government Area.
Mr Ward said he was penning a submission for both the Kiama/Shoalhaven and Wollongong/Shellharbour merger proposals and wanted to hear from everyone.
“The message from the Kiama community has been very consistent. However, in Shellharbour I have received very few responses in relation to what people think,” he said.
“This is about the future of local representation and local services in our region.
“It’s an opportunity, it shouldn’t be seen as necessarily a threat but an opportunity for people to bring forward their views.”
Ms Saliba told the Mercury Mr Ward had only “pleaded the case for Kiama” despite Shellharbour residents being far from silent on the issue.
“I know for a fact, since the announcement was made he’s received numerous calls, over 40 telephone calls, from residents in the Shellharbour City area opposing the merger,” she said.
“I find his behaviour quite bizzare.”
Shellharbour MP Anna Watson has only recieved “a few” letters and emails from her constituents about the Wollongong/Shellharbour merger.
“I urge people in Shellharbour City not to be apathetic and to really start turning their minds to the implications of the state government’s plans for the local area,” Ms Watson said.
“It will be far too late to complain about cuts in jobs, cuts in services, higher rates and inappropriate high density housing development if this amalgamation is formalised in June.”
