Letters / End the apathy!
What a complete and utter waste of an opportunity the recent Faroese delegation visit was. Has it really taken nearly five years since the previous council voted to seriously explore greater autonomy to have a serious conversation with our Nordic neighbours. And so, what?
Our convener, Cllr. Manson on BBC Radio Shetland talks about football matches whilst Faroe brings the gifts of showing how to lead, develop a community and build tunnels.
With pleas to the media to cut the council some slack, if the councillors earned their pay, the critics might just desist. Neil Grant’s (head of development) radio statement – on whose authority? – that tunnels are at least 10 years off is typical of the timid, small-minded, inward looking and officer led council that the people of Shetland have ceased to believe in for years now.
Pathetic turn outs at elections and empty seats. The same with community councils tells you everything you need to know.
The money completely wasted in breaking rocks at the Staney Hill could have gone into a tunnel and/or more houses being built on ’empty’ and dying Bressay, where ready to build land is in huge supply.
Our Lerwick North and Bressay councillors, including our so deputy leader, really need to give themselves a talking to, uncapable of doing any long-term, high level strategic policy and delivery thinking. Just bumbling along behind senior officers say so. Get a grip.
The current council is run by the accountants and (poor) systems and people managers – see the mental health sickness stats.
Begs the question do we need councillors at all? An elected mayor would do. But let’s make it a good one, with vision, drive, financial and managerial skills.
Maybe a council make up of jarls from across the isles would make a better fist of it. Amazing organisational skills and commitment as I discovered on my accidental inclusion in the Bressay Up-Helly-Aa. (Thank you Jarl Beinir Sigmundsson).
My recent invitation – as a former SIC councillor – to celebrate 50 years of the SIC went immediately in the bin. No significant good has come from the SIC.
If anything, a case to revert to the old system with a Lerwick Town Council? This is especially needed given the criminal negligence of the Lerwick Community Council in not acting in the town’s best interests.
So maybe back to the future and re-establish a proper town council of 13 to look after its interests instead of a rural majority in the SIC who do not live in the town, couldn’t give a damn about it and turn it into a car park. And they even complain about that!
Change is possible. But we need real community development leaders on community councils and the SIC. We Axe Fur Whit We Want, allegedly.
But we have to want change. The local sport of understandably pleepsin’ about the council is the easy part of the equation. You, the public, have to end your apathy and get organised for change.
Cllr James J Paton
Lerwick Community Council
Twagoes
Plenty of ‘shared issues’ identified after last month’s Faroese visit
