SPEECH BY GENERAL SECRETARY

Hawera & Normanby Star, Volume XLII, Issue XLII, 13 April 1922, Page 5

SPEECH BY GENERAL SECRETARY

, WELLINGTON. April 12. In the-, course--of. an address at they' annual meeting of the P. and T Association, Mr Combs said that so far as the Association was concerned, they were^ moving in very anxious times, it behoved the Association to out on their considering caps. The balfot for affiliation with the Alliance of Labour hadgiven a substantial majority in favour. No.doubt most of those who voted-were feeling very sore at the Salaries Reduction Bill, but the ballot was not takenwhen members were at their sorest but they had waited ten weeks. The'proposal was explained to members as clearly as possible. They all knew whatthey were voting for. He claimed that the ballot was taken in cold blood, and that it~was not in the heat of the moment —therefore they should examine most carefully the arguments being put forward by those who said another fiallot should be taken. The Association was up against the forces that were up against the Alliance of Labour. The Association had a right to decide a matter of importance to itself, so long*as it broke no law. Therefore the Question was: Could the ballot be overthrown by those possessed of "little brief authority for no other reason than that they were not pleased with the result of the voting. He contended that it could not. An attempt was being made to stampede the public into believing that the Association had done a wrong thing, and had verbally handed the service over to a band of anarchists. A great deal was made of the oath of secrecy. They had all taken it. He could not believe there was one official in the service who did not hold his oath of secrecy as sacred. Members realised that if that was not maintained the efficiency of the service would be undermined: The suggestions that were being made were insults. It was. said that they were 'Sisloyal. Disloyal to what? "Unless the Alliance of Labour was an illegal body, there could be nothing in this contention. Mr Combs spoke of the war service of members <of the P. and T. Association. As to the plank of the Alliance providing for* control of industry^, by workers employed therein, what was wrong with that? In any case, if there was something actually wrong* with it, did anyone think their objective was a possibility of the near future ? That objective could not be gained until public opinion had been educated to the point that it wanted their objective. The Alliance of Labour was not the whole cf public opinion. Neither was *the -P. and T. Service. There were more people outside the Alliance of Labour than were included in its ranks. The time might come when the majority^ the whole of the working people—mignt be linked up with the Alliance of Labour, and the time might come when the majony would think the time had arrived tor the/co-oueration of each industry m the management-of their own particular industry. Mr Combs spoke fu !enSth on the general conditions of the administration of the "Service.