Group claims dinner a misuse of funds

Press, 10 November 1983, Page 2

Group claims dinner a misuse of funds

PA Greymouth Federated Futures has protested about what it sees as a misuse of public funds for the recent World Communications Year dinner at Wellington’s Michael Fowler Centre. The Federated Futures president, Mr Athol McGeady, said the laudable purpose of the dinner was circumvented by the presentation of the New Zealand communicator x award by the Parliamentary Press Gallery to the Coalition for Open Government. Federated Futures said the Post Office-funded dinner was a misuse of public funds. However, the chairman of the Press Gallery,

Ms Robin Shave, yesterday denied the claims. Futures said that the Press* Gallery and coalition spokeswomen used the occasion of the dinner to attack development schemes such as Motunui, Aramoana, the Clyde dam, and other measures vital to New Zealand, increasing productivity and job opportunities for workers.

“The responsible development of' New Zealand’s natural resources is the key element in reducing unemployment,” Futures said.

It criticised the “perceived activities and attitudes” of both the Press Gallery and the coalition over the years for their

effect on the urgent development of resources for the benefit of all New .Zealanders.

Ms Shave said no public funds were involved in the presentation of the New Zealand communicator award. Sponsorship had come from the multinational company, 1.8. M., and from Nova Pacifica Publishers.

“Not one penny of the private funds raised in sponsorship for the dinner was involved in the communicator award,” Ms Shhve said.

It was the role of the press to probe and to question Government activities if the public was to have informed debate, she said.