Different Councils are being merged to become one Super City after October 9 elections in the Greater Auckland area.
The issues and needs of the Papakura Council are different from that of North Shore City Council or any other Council.
No two Councils are similar in their makeup; in fact, there could be more dissimilarities than similarities between the Councils.
When these different Councils are being merged to become one single unit, the question that needs to be asked is, “How can one single unit cater to the needs and aspirations of different dissimilar units?”
A major challenge confronting the new Auckland Super City Council would be to unify the diverse councils into one body and effectively continue the existing programmes and improve upon them.
The Mayor and the Councillors must be those who understand the background and the real issues faced by the ratepayers.
For example, some of these issues are (1) Rich and Poor (2) People born and raised in New Zealand and immigrants (3) People of different nationalities and religious faiths (4) North and South and (5) Left and Right persuasion
The real issue for the Mayor and Councillors would not be simply collecting rates and judiciously spending them for the City.
They need to have a vision to respect these different groups of people and willingly embrace them all. They would then get the wholehearted support of the people for their plans and programmes.
I have been in New Zealand for almost 13 years and I have given myself to help migrants and others who needed support in the initial years of their settling process.
I am standing as an Independent Candidate and hence I am not under compulsion to follow the dictates and policies of any particular party.
I am the only candidate of Indian origin running for a Councillor’s position in the whole of the proposed Super City.
I am contesting from the Albert-Eden-Roskill Ward, which includes the suburbs of Mt Albert, Pt Chevalier, Kingsland, Owairaka, Mt Eden, Epsom, Greenlane, Mt Roskill and Lynfield.
You will receive ballot papers in your letter boxes between September 18 and 22.
You have the power to elect me as a Councillor and I will represent you and be your voice in the Council. You have the choice to vote up to two candidates contesting for the post of Councillor in this Ward. If you cast your vote in favour of ‘Ravi Musuku’ and do not give the second vote to any other candidate, it would be equivalent to giving me two votes.
Editor’s Note: Indian Newslink provides editorial space for candidates running in Local Body elections and later next year in the General Election under its Electionlink pages. The articles appearing in these pages are published without prejudice, allowing the candidates to spell out their policies. We wish to clarify that the opinions expressed in these columns are not those of Indian Newslink. We remain neutral and do not endorse any candidate.
