POWER BOARD'S OFFICES

Evening Post, Issue 122, 26 May 1933, Page 13

POWER BOARD'S OFFICES

(To the Editor.) Sir,—ln your issue yesterday appears a letter from Mr. V. G. .Guy, Feilding, in which he calls me to task for having referred in my annual address to the Hutt Valley Electric Power Board to the urge which parochial sentiment has in affecting I tho decisious of power board members and the need for a controlling head to the power board system to, prevent mistakes being made. I purposely refrained from mentioning the name of any power board, but as Mr. Guy claims,that his board has the distinction of being tho only one to which my remarks could apply I must candidly admit that I had in mind the acrimonious discussion which appeared in the newspapers a short time ago over the question of removing the staff and offices of his Bbard from Palroerston Isorth to Feilding. The conditions as represented by tlie reports showed that the Manawatu-Oroua Electric Power Board had, only a few years ago, established its offices, stores, etc., at Palmerston North, and on the recent election of new members to that board whose interests were more or less centred on Feilding, the question of moving to Feildinf? arose. Apparently the chief executive officer and a minority ot members of the board were against it. From Mr. Guy's letter we learn that the store-rooms, garage, and workshop are being moved to Feilding; presumably leaving the head office at Palmerstou North. After the next election, a new board may decide to move these _ storerooms, workshops, etc., back again to Palmerston North, and herein lies the danger of waste of public moneys and one of the two weaknesses of the present power board system which has no directive head. ■ ~ Writing from Feilding, Mr. Guy really confirms my statement when he says: In my opinion parochial sentiment loomed much more prominently when the present offices, store-rooms, etc., were purchased to Palmerston North." I did not presume to Ray where the offices and buildings should best be situated. If the right place is Feilding they were wrongly placed in the first instance; if Palmerstou North then a mistake is being made now, and it has to be paid for by the ratepayers. I think, perhaps, Mr. Guy when reading extractß of my address separated the remarks, to which he took exception, from their context, and assumed that I was making a deliberate attack on his board. Nothing'was further froni my thoughts. I have no wish to offend the susceptibilities of Mr Guy or any of his fellowmembers, but I have every right to call attention to dangers when they exist and as I see them.—l am, etc., g. BLACKLEY.