13/10/2024
Over the last 12 months I have been subjected to personal attacks, my integrity has been questioned, I’ve been belittled and ultimately made to feel insignificant. My mental health has been impacted. I do the work voluntarily at MVC Boxing, I work full time, I am a wife, I am a mother, and I am pregnant. I thrive on being busy and offering myself to help anyone who needs it. Helping people is why I do what I do.
I’ve personally felt humiliated in an open Council meeting (in front of over 250 local community members which was also live streamed on Facebook). The words used by Cr. Rob Steane, Cr. Mike Symon and Cr. Chris Jones (The Boys Club of Maroondah Council) were in my view, misleading, unfair, targeted, and hurtful. Councillors in elected positions that are no better than you or I. Councillors own code of conduct requires them to be respectful, courteous and tolerant of different views. In fact, they can be suspended for mistreating the public.
What was most disappointing for me on that night, was that these Councillors chose and still choose to beat their chests and throw their weight around using their authority and elected titles. I and the team at MVC Boxing Inc have asked these Councillors to come and speak with us, to work with us, to find common ground. I know that in previous years Cr Rob Steane and Cr Mike Symon happily attended FREE gala nights paid for by our club as a gesture of goodwill and thanks. We have always shown them respect.
As president and volunteer of this small Not-for-profit community based gym with 27 volunteer trainers, all female volunteer committee and 200 active members, I have represented this community against the witch hunt and personal agendas of the Maroondah Boys Club who issued the gym with an eviction notice because the members refused to be coerced into a commercial lease which would increase the rent from 7K to likely over 90K per year effectively shutting the gym down. The members of this gym were lucky to have ACA, Channel 9, 3AW, the Herald Sun and Dean Hurlston from Council Watch step in to support them and of course support me in negotiations to keep the gym open.
Dean has simply sought to FOI the correspondence and information to get to the bottom of what is really behind us being targeted. I openly admit (it’s on the Council and VEC websites) that I ran in the 2022 by-election. I did not win, and accepted the outcome
I am not stupid enough to think I could ever do something for MVC or my own personal interests as a Councillor, with a senior corporate role, I know a lot about ethics and good governance. This year, having another baby on the way, I was not sure if I should throw my hat into the ring again. You see, since losing in 2022, it has felt like some long-term councillors were determined to “get back at me” and the club for seeking to run against them and their “crew”.
After the witch hunt found no serious issue with MVC Boxing, officers recommended a 3-year lease. Cr Chris Jones and Cr Rob Steane then went against officers’ recommendations and proposed only a 1-year lease? They gave no solid grounds in that meeting, but they sure had a lot of things to say that were in my view defamatory, hurtful, reputation destroying, and a misuse of their elected position. Why, perhaps simply because THEY CAN. As a woman, it felt like men were again mansplaining to us how we should do better. Who would have thought. To this day I suspect that Chris moved the motion to impress Rob, I know Councillors play those pathetic games, but the community loses with this behaviour. It’s terrible governance and an abuse of power.
Running in the 2024 Maroondah Council Elections for Jubilee Ward has never been about me or MVC Boxing, it was about you.
• I chose to nominate to SERVE the Community
• NOT for personal interests or self-importance &
• NOT to grow my business (I do not own one)
If elected, the ward of Jubilee and Maroondah will know who I am because that would mean I am doing the job I was elected to do!
I have been transparent in all my election material on who I am, what I do in the community and what I am standing for. It’s been my material, my design, I am self-funded. I am not a member of a political party. I stand independent.
I’ve had an elected federal member tell me not to run for Council as it will ‘piss off’ the Councillors. I’m sorry what? Is this not a Democracy? Whose permissions does the community need to run? Is that really how this works?
I’ve had a council worker tell me to resign from my volunteer position if I was to be Councillor. Sorry why is that? Would I not have to just declare conflicts of interest and not vote on anything related to MVC like any other councillor? Hundreds of Councillors have roles in other community groups and organisations and successfully navigate transparent conflicts of interest issues. Conflicts are not illegal, they happen, so long as you declare them openly the community can and should trust you.
My experience these elections has been far more shocking that I expected, I have seen the lengths some incumbent Councillors will go to. They do not seem to care how much they hurt me, my family, MVC, or how they may impact my livelihood with the crap they say on socials.
I do not jump in the shadows, create fake fb accounts or spend money to post direct letters (S**T Sheets) from a fake person, address and disconnected phone number to discredit me and to coerce and control YOU the voter. I have run a fair and honest campaign and it’s up to YOU to decide who to vote for to represent YOU. I will always respect the outcome.
What has been a positive in all of this is the calls and emails to tell me they’ve received the S**T Sheet in the mail, sent it to me and told me how dodgy it is. This has come from Residents not from any members of the gym. To the deceitful people that did this to hurt and harm me, the letter has worked against you.
The behaviours displayed says more about the people that did this and the lengths they will go to try and keep me out of Council. It shows how weak and scared they are to have me in Council. I encourage you to start asking questions why? Don’t you as a voter want honesty, transparency and someone that will listen and represent you?
Don’t you think that Councillors should be focusing on the Maroondah 2040 vision, strategic initiatives and annual budget to deliver value and quality services to Residents rather than going on a witch hunt to close a small Not-For-Profit community gym that doesn’t make any money for one’s own personal vendetta?
If you spend more time trying to discredit honest and authentic volunteers and community members instead of focusing on the fact no one knows you in the community then hold yourself accountable and change your own narrative.
I will let you ponder that. But if this is the standard, it is exactly why we need a lot of change in Council
Vote 1 Caroline Nordio for the change that is needed in OUR Community
Authorised by Caroline Nordio PO Box 664 Heathmont VIC 3135 (a real person and real address)
