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Carol Altmann – The Terrier

And so it comes to a close.

Four years after the current Warrnambool City councillors were elected promising unity, transparency, positivity – and a bunch of other things that end in ‘y’ – they will hold their final public meeting tomorrow night (Monday 7/9) as a divided mess that has failed dismally to live up to that promise.

Ratepayers have not been told the truth about many things over these past four years – but the sudden dumping of the former CEO, Peter Schneider, is the Godzilla of the piece.

It is the mother-of-all finales to what has been four years of secrets and spin and it has split the council, because there is only so much bullshite one council can absorb, even when still smiling for Zoom.

As we limp toward the October election, we must demand the truth on this whole Schneider affair, because we are paying for it.

We want evidence of the claim, for example, that the CEO was failing to deliver on the council’s 2040 plan.

As it happens, tomorrow night’s hefty agenda contains a little coloured graph that shows an update on council “activities and initiatives” between April and June this year (see above).

Of the 145 things listed:

118 of them were finished;

21 are progressing;

5 are on hold;

and only one is not progressing.

This, of course, is at a time when Covid-19 had thrown the world into chaos.

Those figures don’t look like a failure to me, but more like council staff getting stuff done.

So what is the truth? Was the CEO making progress or not?

And, as I wrote on Friday, we have the wobbly story around the thousands of dollars in legal fees that were racked up by the four councillors who plotted the CEO’s demise.

Ratepayers were expected to pay for this legal bill, before it was torn up and the advice was suddenly pro bono (free).

Why was it free?

Cr Mike Neoh told the Standard on Friday that he believed there was a problem with the invoice.

A council spokesman told me on Friday that the council didn’t ask why.

How does Cr Neoh know what happened if the council officers don’t?

What is the truth of the matter?

Is the root of it, as MP Bev McArthur told Parliament last week, that the councillors had no authority to hire the lawyers in the first place?

Lastly, we’ve been told that Mr Schneider was also dumped because of the terrible community survey results and terrible staff survey results.

But planning for this coup started in February: Crs Gaston, Neoh and Owen were already making their moves.

They had begun to talk to people. Phone calls were being made. They just needed one more councillor to come on board.

That was in February – well before the results of the surveys were known.

On top of this, once Cr Cassidy signed on and the axe could be swung on 13 July, dozens of WCC staff swamped councillors with emails of support for the CEO.

So what is the truth?

Was the former CEO a friend or foe of the staff who hoped to see a better council than the one he inherited, which was wracked for years with allegations of bullying, ignoring staff surveys, favouritism, and a “mates club” mentality?

It’s a sweet irony that the council’s final meeting contains the annual report which opens with this:

“WCC is committed to transparent reporting and accountability to the community.”

Given the state of play, we can only take this as humour as the lights fade on this sorry chapter and we prepare to write a new one.

Carol Altmann – The Terrier

The story behind the axing of the Warrnambool City Council CEO is becoming murkier, with news that the very expensive lawyers involved didn’t charge a cent.

I can tell you the lawyers did in fact charge the council, but then they pulled the bill.

But let’s go back a step.

In one of the most staggering revelations of this whole messy affair, Cr Sue Cassidy told the Standard on Thursday that, “no legal fees were charged by our solicitors” for advice around the dumping of CEO Peter Schneider.

Cough! Splutter! Choke!

When, in the long history of the esteemed legal profession, have you ever heard of top-class lawyers from Melbourne working for free?

Why would any lawyer knock back a lazy $650 to $800 an hour to provide advice on how to sack a CEO?

We now know the four councillors involved sought legal advice and didn’t just Google “how to dump a CEO and still get re-elected”.

This was a very serious matter, given they were about to toss the CEO out the door and hand the cost to ratepayers . That cost, so far, is hundreds of thousands of dollars – around $400,000 in fact.

Yet Cr Cassidy tells us the lawyers never charged a cent for what must have been considerable, specialist advice.

Well of course they charged the council – they sent a bill – but there’s a twist.

They later tore it up.

“Council received a bill that was later withdrawn,” a council spokesman told me today via email.

What? Withdrawn?

Righto, we are in seriously weird territory.

Why would a law firm invoice the council for legal services, and then withdraw that bill?

I asked that question back to the council.

The council didn’t ask why, the spokesman replied.

Oh come on. Seriously?

A top law firm wipes off a bill for what must have been thousands of dollars worth of work and the council just shrugged?

Nothing makes sense and we are – still – not being told the full story by the council, or the four councillors involved: Crs Neoh, Cassidy, Gaston and Owen.

Instead the story drips out in little dark droplets of detail that we all have to try and piece together.

The former CEO has been gone almost two months and we still don’t have the full picture.

As was revealed here, the Local Government Inspectorate is now investigating to see if there were any breaches of the Local Government Act.

Regardless of why the CEO was dumped (“no reason” is the official reason), this whole thing has been handled appallingly on behalf of the people of Warrnambool who, from my reading, are justifiably angry and embarrassed.

Western Victoria Upper House MP Bev McArthur this week raised the whole mess in Parliament, and pulled no punches:

“My question is to the Minister for Local Government and concerns the recent turmoil at Warrnambool City Council and the choice facing voters at the forthcoming October elections.

As the minister knows, the chief municipal inspector has announced an investigation into the sacking of the council’s CEO.

This shoddy backstairs intrigue saw four councillors conspire to seek legal advice behind the backs of their colleagues without spending authorisation and spring the sacking on an otherwise well-regarded CEO whilst simultaneously appointing an existing director to the job.

I welcome this review and thank the minister for his assistance in securing it. On top of this, last December the Victorian Ombudsman began investigating potential credit card fraud at Warrnambool City Council.

The question I have for the minister is: can he ensure that all relevant information from both reports will be released prior to the upcoming local government elections?”

—–

Questions upon questions – and they will keep coming until we get all the answers.

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Carol Altmann – The Terrier

Tonight I want to pause and reflect on this simple fact: the Warrnambool City Council is now the subject of not one, not two, but three investigations.

One of those investigations is the Ombudsman’s inquiry into the misuse of corporate credit cards.

The second is the council’s own internal inquiry into these credit cards.

The third is a Worksafe investigation into alleged bullying.

And the fourth – revealed here on Friday afternoon – is an investigation by the Local Government Inspectorate into the sacking of the former CEO Peter Schneider by Crs Sue Cassidy, Mike Neoh, Kylie Gaston and David Owen.

What a freaking mess.

And all of it – ALL of it – will come at a cost to ratepayers, which is the bottom line of this latest disgraceful manoeuvring, backroom dealing and secrecy.

We are footing the bill.

We will pay for Mr Schneider’s payout, whatever that is, because we still don’t know.

The Four Horsemen involved in lopping off the CEO’s head were happy to swing the sword, but haven’t had the spine to reveal how much it will cost ratepayers, because that information will undoubtedly upset voters as they head toward the October election.

The councillors don’t want that bitter truth spoiling their campaigns.

Best to distract ratepayers with other shiny things, like bike paths and taverns and new grass at Reid Oval.

And the four councillors involved in the coup brought in all the lawyers they needed to get rid of Mr Schneider, and guess who pays for that?

We do.

How much was spent on these lawyers? We don’t know.

And who decided to get that legal advice?

It sure as heck wasn’t supported by all seven councillors, because three of them – Crs Tony Herbert, Peter Sycopoulis and Robert Anderson – were dead set against the whole idea.

This begs another key question: can four councillors rack up a legal bill without the approval of the other councillors?

I am no expert on the finer details of the Local Government Act but the Inspectorate is, and I hope it will pull this question apart during its investigation, because, as a ratepayer, I have a vested interest.

We all have a vested interest, because the four councillors involved have been spending my money – and yours – and we deserve to know the full story.

Rates notices are going out as we speak and blowing people away: I am getting messages every day from people shocked by how much we pay in Warrnambool compared to other cities.

I am also talking to people worried about what lies ahead as the full economic impact of the C19 virus kicks in.

And yet here are four of our councillors, blowing hundreds of thousands of dollars on lawyers and payouts for reasons which are all secret.

The inspectorate’s investigation will probably take some time, but my hope is that the four councillors who are now part of this investigation will step up themselves and tell the public the full story about this coup and the cost.

They know the truth.

As we inch closer toward the October election, there will be many shiny distractions and photo ops and promises, but the two things that I am hearing voters want the most right now are transparency and integrity.

Transparency and integrity.

Over to you, councillors.

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Exclusive

Carol Altmann – The Terrier

The Local Government Inspectorate has launched an official investigation into the sacking of former Warrnambool City Council chief executive officer Peter Schneider.

Acting Chief Municipal Inspector Dr John Lynch confirmed the investigation this afternoon in response to questions from The Terrier.

“The Local Government Inspectorate is investigating matters relating to the recent termination of a CEO contract at Warrnambool City Council,” he said.

The LGI is Victoria’s top, independent watchdog over local government and has powers to investigate, audit and prosecute breaches of the Local Government Act.

Dr Lynch said he was unable to provide any detail on the scope of the investigation while it is underway.

“The Inspectorate deals with complaints or requests for investigation in strict confidence and does not provide information that may compromise current investigations.

(It) will be able to provide further comment when the investigation is completed,” he said.

While the depth and breadth of the LGI’s investigation is confidential, there has been mounting speculation and public unrest around the circumstances that led to the sudden dumping of Mr Schneider on 13 July.

Mr Schneider, who had relocated from Perth to take up the position in February 2019, was sacked after just 18 months in the job.

The dismissal happened behind closed doors, with four councillors – Crs Michael Neoh, Kylie Gaston, David Owen and Sue Cassidy – voting as one and using a “no reason” clause in Mr Schneider’s contract to dump him.

The council’s Community Development Manager Vikki King was then immediately appointed acting CEO for up to 12 months. Ms King now holds both positions.

Confirmation of the investigation comes as Cr Sue Cassidy today announced she would run again in the October election.

Former mayors Crs Neoh and Gaston have already declared they will run again.

Cr Owen is yet to make an announcement.

Mayor Tony Herbert, Cr Robert Anderson and Cr Peter Sycopoulis all voted against Mr Schneider’s sacking and have remained vocal in their support for the former CEO.

While it’s still not known why Mr Schneider was sacked, it is known is that rumblings of discontent among the four councillors behind the coup started as early as February.

Despite this, Mr Schneider went on to pass his performance review and received a pay rise as a result.

The discontent reignited in June, with Cr Neoh demanding the release of key findings of the latest WCC staff survey results – something he had never done in his previous 16 years on council – telling the Standard on 28 June he held “grave concerns” about the results.

That same month, on 22 June, the annual community satisfaction survey showed the WCC had hit an all time low.

Mr Schneider was sacked just three weeks later. He is now pursuing his own legal action against the four councillors involved.

The four councillors have refused to disclose how much the coup will cost ratepayers, but it’s expected to run into hundreds of thousands of dollars.

The LGI investigation is the second major investigation into the council as it limps toward the October election, with the Victorian Ombudsman still to release her report into the misuse of council credit cards.

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Carol Altmann – The Terrier

It’s simply a chance for councillors to raise topics that are not already listed on the council meeting agenda.

The could perhaps ask short questions on our behalf like: “how much has the council spent on legal fees so far this year?”

Or “has Cr Neoh installed a grease trap and fixed that dodgy deck at his restaurant?”

Or, they could ask long questions like: what was the point of that $700 dinner for four at the Myrtle Bar & Kitchen, which included five bottles of wine and six glasses of champagne and was paid for by the Director of City Growth, Andrew Paton, and attended by Cr Sue Cassidy?

Or why was Vikki King appointed acting CEO and not Peter Utri, who is the most logical choice being the Director of Corporate Strategies?

Or who gave Ms King permission to be both acting CEO and head of Community Services at the same time? Did she have to ask an underling?

And then there is that question which just won’t go away: “why did you sack Peter Schneider, and how much will it cost us?”

You get the drift.

Moyne Council has general business. It even has urgent business. It also allows the public to address the council for up to five minutes on an agenda item.

Warrnambool City Council does none of this.

General business ended in 2015, when then councillors Kylie Gaston, Mike Neoh, Jacinta Ermacora and Rob Askew threw it out the door –  Crs Peter Sycopoulis and Brian Kelson voted to keep it – and since then it has been one, slow steady retreat into secrecy.

We saw the worst of that secrecy with last month’s dumping of the CEO, when four councillors decided to seek legal advice on how to get rid of him, voted to get rid of him, stitched up some sort of deal with the new acting CEO, and did it all without telling us a single word.

This is new normal for our council.

What a disgraceful benchmark and one we should never accept. The truth of that whole stitch up is yet to come out, but come out, it will.

In the meantime, we shall watch with interest tomorrow night to see who leaps up to defend the public right to know.

Only then will you be able to judge, as the October election creeps closer, who actually stands for transparency and openness and who just talks the talk, while pulling down the shutters.

(Tomorrow night the council will also vote to start looking for a recruitment agency, at a cost of $50,000, to hire a permanent CEO by next May.

I remember the cost of using a recruitment agency was one reason Crs Neoh and Gaston gave for rolling over Bruce Anson’s contract each time it expired, rather than look for fresh blood.

Now the WCC will spend another $50,000 – or $100,000 in two years – without so much as a blink.)

The special council meeting via Zoom starts at 5.45pm and will be live-streamed on the WCC website.

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