After tense debate, Greater Dandenong councillor’s ratepayer-funded trip to Canberra to mark Serbian Statehood Day has been given the go-ahead.
Cr Lana Formoso had successfully moved an urgent-business item for the council to pay up to $1500 in accommodation and air fares for her to attend the Serbian Ambassador-hosted event on 11 February.
A 4-2 majority of councillors, including Cr Formoso and ALP colleagues, approved the travel claim at a 28 January public meeting.
With five councillors absent, the quorum of six councillors was only reached due to Cr Formoso’s participation.
In opposition, Greens councillor Rhonda Garad had intially sought a rescission, arguing that Cr Formoso shouldn’t have been allowed to support, speak and vote on the motion.
She argued Cr Formoso had a conflict-of-interest due to receiving “direct material benefit”.
However Cr Garad later retracted, upon legal advice to the council deeming there was no breach of conflict-of-interest.
Lawyers stated that the situation was similar to Greater Dandenong councillors last year approving – without any declared conflicts – nearly $30,000 funding for eight councillors and Ms Weatherill to attend the 2024 Australian Local Government Association (ALGA) national general assembly.
A “shocked” and “gobsmacked” Cr Garad said she had thought it was a “clear” conflict.
“If the legal opinion is that is kosher, what is not kosher? I don’t know what’s a conflict of interest anymore”.
Greater Dandenong chief executive Jacqui Weatherill didn’t comment on whether a conflict of interest had arisen.
She told Star Journal that “councillors are responsible to identify their own conflicts of interest and if required, to exclude themselves from the decision-making process” under the Local Government Act.
During the 28 January debate, Cr Garad said she supported Cr Formoso in attending the event but not at ratepayers’ expense.
“Her role is as a ward councillor for the general population. She has no specific role in representing the interests of one particular group.”
Cr Garad warned it could open the floodgates for the council to fund councillor travel to other interstate cultural events despite “difficult financial times”.
“We can all have a fun time.
“These things are pleasurable and personally important but I haven’t heard any direct benefit back to City of Greater Dandenong.”
Cr Formoso, who has Serbian heritage and was invited by the Serbian Ambassador, told the meeting she was “pretty disappointed” by Cr Garad’s “take” which was “undermining my community”.
Greater Dandenong was home to the “highest number of Serbian people”, with her representing Greater Dandenong Council and its mayor at the “prestigious event”, she said.
The Noble Park North Ward councillor said she would support any other councillor attending any similar event in Australia “in this capacity”, she said.
And pledged to forgo this year’s annual ALGA assembly in Canberra – which was traditionally attended by many of Greater Dandenong’s councillors.
As mayor last year, Cr Formoso introduced new “transparent” travel-claim protocols to ensure the claims were considered in public.
This occurred after a travel-expenses furore over her attendance at a similar Statehood Day of Serbia reception in Canberra last February.
As required by the council’s travel policy at the time, the then-mayor Formoso approved Cr Bob Milkovic’s travel and accommodation expenses of about $1450 for the same event.
However Cr Formoso’s own travel costs did not receive prior approval from chief executive Jacqui Weatherill – which is also required under the council’s protocol.
As a result, Cr Formoso reimbursed her expenses to the council and introduced new protocols requiring a councillors’ vote to approve their colleagues’ interstate travel claims.
