Manawatu Herald. THURSDAY, MARCH 30,1898. Education Board Election.

Manawatu Herald, 30 March 1893, Page 2

Manawatu Herald. THURSDAY, MARCH 30, 1898. Education Board Election.

• In another column it will be seen that the farce of " electing a member " by the school committees was gravely gone through at the Wan ganui Education Board's meeting, the result apparently being that the three old members were returned. There is something very grotesque in this annual appeal to the school committees and the regularly recurring results. It is also a most singular proceeding to witness candidates counting up their own ballot papers and acting as returning officers for their own election. Without sug gesting that the election was not fair according to the Act, the public are treated most slightingly in the matter. The report simply states that so many committees voted for each member leaving all, outside of the Board, in the dark as to how many schools sent in voting papers, or in fact any particulars. It is impossible with the information before U8 to estimate the value of the votes given for each candidate, for it is possible that the candidate receiving the least number of votes might be the one approved of by committees of school districts sending the lai'gest number of children to the schools. Wo should very much have liked to have seen a change in the membership of the Board and it would have been better for the Board to have assisted in making room for a new man so that, should there be no cliquism, their actions might be made known. The public are naturally anxious to know why the old members work so hard to retain their seats, and so constantly use their influence to secure the return of the three retiring members each year. We have said before now, that peculiar relations exist between members and employees, and we called upon the Chairman of the Board before he left for England, for information as to the relations between any members of the Board and the employees receiving salaries from the Board. It may not, to those who know of the peculiar relationship existing between members and employees, be a surprise to know that the Chairman conveniently ignored our query. We shall make an effort to secure the particlars at present withheld in connection with with the election, when probably what appears a defeat may be in reality a victory and thus lead to such an alteration in the system of election as would accord weight to votes according to the number of the scholars which the committees represent* At my rate we ate not

surprised at the result of the election, , md am not sorry for it in one way | is it may still further ftrvK the ejvs >_ of the public io the very close corpo t L'a'ion the Board has managed W make itself into, ,_.,.... _ v . _ i