Building bridges between local people & Council

Richard Bruinsma : people feel the hinterland has been “forgotten” by the council.

DIVISION five candidate Richard Bruinsma has a straightforward view on what his job will be if he is elected to council.

“The role of a councillor and the mayor is to represent our communities with a view to making life better for everyone. It’s that simple,” he told a meet the candidates gathering organised by Woombye Community and Business Association.

Mr Bruinsma said he had been door-knocking in the community where people had told him they felt the hinterland had been “forgotten” by the council.

He said his more than 20 years as a a Palmwoods resident, and the skills he had accumulated as a journalist and behind-the-scenes in politics, would rebuild a bridge between the community and council decision makers.

Mr Bruinsma was editor of the Sunshine Valley Gazette for four years when the newspaper was under previous ownership, during which time he had “thousands of conversations” with division five residents about a range of concerns and issues.

“The role was characterised by the need to respect everyone to ask the right questions and listen properly to get an accurate understanding of the issues,” he said.

“It fine-tuned my abilities to assess information quickly then come up with what I believe is the right decision and have the conviction to stand by it.” 

Mr Bruinsma said he also had experience working with individuals, community groups, government and ministerial officers as a federal political staffer.  He said he had worked respectfully with people of all political backgrounds but also understood many people did not indulge in politics and simply put their trust in elected representatives to make decisions that make their lives better.

“And in local government, a pothole, a badly needed footpath, and a sensible decision on a development application, these things do not have a political colour - they are issues that affect everyone.”

Readers Question ‘Forgotten hinterland’

Mel asked: West of the Bruce Highway is the the forgotten land. When will council start paying some attention to the beautiful Hinterland and its rate-paying residents?

Mr Bruinsma: 

Council’s detachment from hinterland communities has been raised repeatedly with me as I’ve doorknocked and met with Division 5 residents during the campaign. I wrote to all the mayoral candidates recently to seek a pre-election commitment that they would listen to the hinterland and take our needs seriously – my letter to the mayoral candidates is on my Facebook page: ‘Richard Bruinsma – Community Member’. All six mayoral candidates have publicly acknowledged the hinterland’s feeling of being forgotten and all have said they intend to fix that. I’ve also proposed hosting a Division 5 bus tour for senior council officers and the mayor, to show them our key locations and priority needs, helping build a clearer understanding of our region among those who hold control of council’s decision-making and approval processes. Also, if elected, I intend to actively and regularly communicate our needs to the CEO and her senior council executives.