WORDY WARFARE

Sun (Auckland), Volume III, Issue 873, 17 January 1930, Page 16

WORDY WARFARE

COUNCILLOR CENSURED “BREEZE” AT OTAHUHU Word warfare enlivened the usually quiet proceedings of the Otahuhu Borough Council last evening, and culminated in a vote of censure being passed on Cr. G. V. Pearce, chairman of the Works Committee. Cr. Grey set the ball rolling when he asked the Mayor, Mr. T. H. Clements, why the chairman of the Works Committee had flouted the resolutions of the council by having an employee named Davis still on the staff, when it had been decided to dispense with his services before the holidays. Cr. Pearce, chairman of the Works Committee, wa.s on his feet immediately. He said that there had been a lot of pin-pricking going on in the council lately, and for some unknown reason Cr. Grey was victimising the employee referred to. Cr. Grey rose to a point of order and asked the Mayor to demand the withdrawal of the remark regarding victimisation. The Mayor then asked Cr. Pearce to withdraw the remark, but he ignored the request and continued to speak, and Cr. Grey again asked the Mayor to have the remark withdrawn. Cr. Pearce exclaimed heatedly, “I refuse,” and continued to read a lengthy list of the duties of the borough employees for the next week, in order to show the councillors that the staff was working short-handed. When Cr. Pearce concluded, the Mayor said that it was quite definite that the man must go. Cr. Grey said he intended to treat Cr. Pearce’s remarks regarding victimisation with the contempt they deserved, as they came from “a diseased mind.” Sparks flew again when Cl’. Grey asked the Mayor when authority had been given to employ an extra man on the parks and reserves. Cr. Pearce said the chairman of the Parks Committee could answer that. Cr. Linkhorn, chairman of that committee, said the Works Committee chairman Lad put a man on for a couple of days, and he stayed oil for seven days. Cr. Grey then drew the council s attention to the fact that it had been previously decided to employ married ratepayers. There was a list of such unemployed, who were willing to work off the arrears of their rates, but when a man was wanted, one was not taken from the list. He said the council was becoming “a onehorse show.” He proposed a vote of censure on Cr. Pearce, chairman of the Works Committee, for the manner in which he had flouted the decisions of the council.

In seconding the resolution, Cr. Hunter said the resolutions of the council had been flagrantly flouted. If men were wanted for special work they should be taken from the permanent employees or from the unemployed list. On being put. the resolution was carried. Cr. Pearce: I hope it gives you a lot of satisfaction. Cr. Grey: I hope the council will be run on business lines in the future. Later in the meeting, it was decided to dispense with the services of Davis.