By CAM LUCADOU-WELLS
GREATER Dandenong councillor Maria Sampey has lashed out at “gutless” colleagues after withdrawing her freedom-of-information appeal to gain access to an unedited report of last year’s secret investigation into herself and Cr Peter Brown.
Cr Sampey said after mediation talks at the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal this month she was convinced her bid would fail at a full VCAT hearing because of the report’s legally-privileged status.
“The law is an ass,” she said. “I’m banging my head against a brick wall.”
Cr Sampey said councillors had taken away her right to see the full report when they voted last year that councillors would be able to read only an edited version – ostensibily to protect council staff witnesses’ identities.
The censored report has been kept in a lawyer’s office, inaccessible to the public.
“The other councillors voted for the report to be redacted before they had even seen the original,” Cr Sampey said.
“They were manipulated. They are basically just seat warmers and gutless. They’re not interested in what’s going on with their fellow councillors,” she said.
Cr Sampey has been absent from council meetings on stress leave since November, citing a “breakdown” due to the probe and its aftermath.
“How will I be able to work with them?” she said of her colleagues last week.
The ’confidential and privileged’ probe was launched by then-mayor Angela Long and chief executive John Bennie into the accused councillors’ conduct in allegedly upsetting council staff while demanding the repair of a botched footpath in Noble Park.
No action was taken against the pair as a result of the investigation.
Cr Brown last week said he’d “moved on”, choosing not to read the redacted report.
“I chose not to give the process the credibility of giving my interest to it. Justice doesn’t always prevail.
“I’m still disappointed that councillors were happy to see other councillors have the blowtorch put on their bellies.
“I’ll just wait until the next election and there’ll be one or two councillors I’ll look forward to being defeated.”
He said he’d learnt from the “unpleasant experience” not to “lose my temper … thump the table and yell at someone”.
“But I don’t think the public give a stuff.”
Mayor Jim Memeti said he’d welcome Cr Sampey back at council meetings.
“As far as I was concerned, it was done and dusted when the (redacted report) decision was made.
“Maria is a good councillor. She knows the area, she’s a former mayor.
“She hasn’t really neglected her community. She’s still taking calls and visiting residents, but it would be nice for her to come back to council,” Cr Memeti said.
