The newest candidate to signal his intention to run for Warrnambool City Council election wants to see more transparency and better community engagement.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
It is Jim Burke's first tilt at local government elections and he said it was time to stand up and try and make a difference.
"They've got some serious problems there and I've not been backward about criticising and, at the end of the day, you can't do that forever. You've got to put up or shut up," Mr Burke said.
"If I'm going to say these things about the council perhaps I should put my hand up and see if I can't do a bit better."
Mr Burke said he believed people no longer trusted the council. "The only way to regain the trust is be more transparent, go out and talk to the community, let them talk to you," he said.
Mr Burke said the council also had some fairly big financial or structural issues that needed to be addressed such as the losses at Flagstaff Hill Maritime Museum.
"They need to so something about that," he said.
Mr Burke said he would like to revisit the city council's organisational structural review that was completed but had not yet been implemented.
The council has flagged its intention to increase rates above the state government-imposed cap next year after forgoing the extra revenue this year in light of the pandemic, but Mr Burke said he would be very reluctant to see the rates go up.
Mr Burke moved to Warrnambool in 2009 with his wife and parents, who he cared for until they passed away.
He had joined the Navy when he was young and spent about 24 years working in communications and later in intelligence before retiring as a warrant officer.
During his time in the Navy he did a couple of overseas deployments including a year in Singapore.
After leaving the Navy he took on civilian's work in the Defence Signals Directorate as a senior compliance officer.
"One of the big jobs was keeping an eye on the ethics of our behaviour because you could do things legally and still get into a lot of trouble," Mr Burke said.
He was then invited to work in the office of Inspector General of Intelligence and Security as a senior investigation officer.
He has a bachelor of arts in politics and public policy and is now halfway through a masters degree in the same discipline.
Council elections are set to be held across the state in October via postal vote.
Read more:
Our COVID-19 news articles relating to public health and safety are free for anyone to access. However, we depend on subscription revenue to support our journalism. If you are able, please subscribe here. If you are already a subscriber, thank you for your support.
