For the last 16 years he has served as chair of the Multicultural Communities Council of Illawarra (MCCI).

Mr Habak, who still holds that role, is one of five government appointed members of the new Illawarra/South East Regional Advisory Council (RAC).

‘’I’m looking forward to being part of the Regional Advisory Council again. I’ll do my best to advise the RAC on the issues in the Illawarra and hopefully help to resolve them,’’ he said.

Mr Habak was on hand late last month when the Minister for Multiculturalism, John Ajaka dropped by MCCI’s Wollongong offices to hold the inaugural RAC meeting for Illawarra/South East.

Mr Ajaka said the NSW Government expanded the number of Regional Advisory Councils from 10 to 12 in response to an overwhelming positive community response.

‘’The councils [RAC] aren’t just about listening to the community or identifying local problems. They are about bringing people and organisations together to develop local solutions,’’ Mr Ajaka said.

‘’I want the members to be the eyes and ears of the Multicultural NSW Board from a grassroots level. They know the local issues and can not only advise but give me options and solutions to help resolve these issues.’’

RAC’s are local community forums which assist Multicultural NSW promote cultural diversity and community harmony.

A key part of Multicultural NSW’s Community Engagement Strategy, each RAC is chaired by a Multicultural NSW Board member, and includes community members and a combination of state and local government representatives.

Peter El Khouri is RAC chairperson for Illawarra/South East. The government members joining Mr Habak are Carol Bridge, Detective Superintendent Joe Cassar, Irene Maya and Vanessa Ford. New community members are Leslie Bursill, Zelijka Cankovic, Khaled Elhage, John Gunn, Yvonne Henderson, Sherryl Reddy, Pavla Stupkova and Cecilia Milani.