Canon Charles Jordan. A worthy example of public service. In those days the Mayor and Councillors were not paid.
The role of Mayor is not to be a business manager, or a consultant, or a chief executive. The council chief executive manages the day to day operation of the council organisation. The role of mayor according to the Local Government Act is to:
- Provide leadership to the council
- Provide leadership to the community
I think that they have this around the wrong way. To me, the most important role is providing leadership to the community, and not by imposing your own opinions, or serving vested interests. The role of Mayor is to listen to the community, and work with the community to get the best results for the whole community, not just for special interest groups.
The mayor should be able to relate to and engage with people across the whole community, or in the words of Rudyard Kipling:
If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,
Or walk with Kings—nor lose the common touch,
If By Rudyard Kipling
The community has the best ideas about what they need. The Mayor needs to Listen to the community (with a capital L), and Work with the community (with a capital W).
The best local initiatives come from the community. For example, the AIMS Games, a fantastic national level event started by the local schools. Council should support those kinds of community initiatives.
There are so many community groups in Tauranga just quietly going about their business. They are a huge strength in our community, and council should be supporting them, not trying to destroy them. Most of them do not even ask for council support, but council should be ready to help, on a self help basis. Community groups should largely fund themselves, and council can assist when needed. Community groups should not just expect handouts.
To me the second role is providing leadership to the council. And that leadership is to implement the community goals and needs, for the community.
The mayor needs to competent and honest, have a genuine desire for public service not personal gain, and be independent from vested interest groups. There should be no more of Tauranga’s famous back room deals. To make good decisions, the Mayor has to understand the core business of the council. How can you lead where you do not understand? Having said that you cannot know all the fine detail about everything. But you need to be able to ask the right questions, and properly evaluate the answers. Know when to consult a specialist. Be able to prioritise, and make good decisions. The Mayor should have his/her own ideas on where the community could go, but can not just impose them (My Goals).
Most importantly, the Mayor cannot do that on his/her own. The Mayor does it as part of a team, the Mayor and Councillors. The Mayor does not get to choose the Councillors, but has to work with them to get the best result for Tauranga. The team will have different opinions, and the Mayor needs to lead them towards good community results.
I hope that Tauranga will elect a good Mayor, along with a good team of Councillors to work with the Mayor.
Why Vote For Me For Councillor
The role of Councillors should be similar to the Mayor, as above, but to a lesser degree. Councillors also need to be competent and honest, and be prepared to listen to and work with the community. Councillors should understand the needs of their local ward, but must also act in the best interests of the whole of Tauranga. Councillors should be independent of vested interest groups.