by Sahar Foladi
Greater Dandenong’s next mayor and deputy mayor appears to be settled ahead of the formal election on Monday 18 November.
The ALP and long-term councillor Jim Memeti said he will stand to nominate himself for the mayoral position after councillors were formally sworn in on Wednesday evening 13 November.
As the longest serving councillor onboard (now his sixth term) and a five-time mayor, Memeti says he has all that is needed to support the seven re-elected councillors and three fresh ones starting their first terms.
“I’ve decided to nominate for mayor for that reason – it’s such a young council.
“Over the years I’ve always nurtured, helped and aided new councillors so I think that the strength that I have had in the past will put me in good stead.
“That’s my push for council, to say to my colleagues that I’m there, I’ve got the experience and I’ve got the time to help you.
“I’ve always fulfilled the role of mayor as a full time job and if elected I will do it full time again,” he says.
“I’ll put everything into it and I’ll be there to support my colleagues but also give my very best to the community.”
The “inexperienced council” made up of three young councillors in their 20’s and a female majority will “learn pretty quickly” according to Memeti shining the example of the ALP Yarraman ward councillor Phillip Danh who joined the council just six-months ago and has “picked up” the role well.
Also, ALP-affiliated Noble Park councillor Sophie Tan, who was re-elected uncontested, says she had been eyeing the position but will have to settle nominating herself as deputy mayor due to her “work conditions” at Commonwealth Bank in Melbourne CBD.
“As a mayor you need a full-time role so that means you have to resign or take a year off but with my (work) condition I can’t.
“I can’t take off work at the moment, or the whole 12-months off. Instead I can reduce my hours and probably have to run as deputy mayor for this year.
“For the next year, moving forward I have to reduce my hours, maybe take a day off like Wednesday and finish early on Monday so I can do more.”
First elected in 2019, Tan says if work hours weren’t an issue she would’ve “definitely” be up for the mayoral position, highlighting her need to “represent diverse communities” with some experience as deputy mayor in 2020-21.
Tan praised Memeti saying he’s previously done a “great job” as a mayor.
“He used to be my mentor since I started. As Federal elections are coming up we both have an existing relationship with our state and federal MP.
“For myself, I’ll be building a relationship with our local MP’s, especially state and federal, just to advance our agenda with the elections coming up. So we’ll try to advocate for more funding, especially with major projects coming up.
“We’ve got the ($100-million-plus) Dandenong Wellbeing Centre at the moment – we’ve only got $20 million funded by the Federal government.”
The Noble Park councillor said her priorities included small business owners, senior groups with aged care reform and safety issues.
Meanwhile, the re-elected Noble Park North councillor Lana Formoso, who just served as the mayor for the past year, says the downward transition will not be tough at all for her and that “nothing’s changed.”
“I’m doing exactly what I did. It was just a title for a very short period of time.
“I worked seven days a week, day and night. I went to meetings, I went to events, it was relentless. I’m not complaining. That’s what I asked for. I’m born and raised in this city so therefore I want the best outcomes for this city.
“So, it was an honour and a privilege, I’m extremely grateful for that opportunity and I never took that for granted.”
She says she expects the new councillors to be “thirsty for knowledge” and “to want the best possible outcomes.”
“I know because they’re young, because they knew that they’re going to work really, really hard.
“I know that they don’t have a level of complacency, they’re going to want to do the best that they can within their capacity and that’s all you could ever ask for from a councillor.”
The mayor and deputy mayor will be elected on Monday 18 November at 7pm.
