DIFFICULT PROBLEMS

Wairarapa Times-Age, 24 May 1944, Page 2

DIFFICULT PROBLEMS

LEFT BY OUTGOING BOROUGH COUNCIL: ■ RESTORATION OF DAMAGED BUILDINGS MR J. ROBERTSON ADDRESSES ELECTORS “The outgoing Borough Council has left us some very difficult problems,” observed Mr J. Robertson, Labour'Candidate for the mayoralty when addressing electors last night in the Masterion West School. The first’ of these problems was the restoration of public buildings, said Mr Robertson. The second was the problem of the gasworks which were a dwindling asset and the third the abattoirs which were incurring an annual loss of £3OO. Referring to the restoration of earthquake-damaged public buildings, he said party politics in local bodies came into the subject. Mr Robertson said he could not imagine Mr Kemp ever being non-political. One had only to examine his kaleidoscopic political career to see that. Mr Robertson said there was a dangerous aspect to the matter which he had seen as member for Masterton for. eight years. The local bodies of the district, due to political prejudice, had failed to co-operate with the Government and carry out projects which would have been for the good of the people. Masterton in particular had suffered because of that. Mr Robertson said he did not wish to raise past sores/ofit the matter had to be faced up to. The Masterton Trust Lands Trust was supposed to be a non-political body. When he was elected in 1935, said Mr Robertson, the Opera House was in splints from the 1934 earthquake. The Trust had more or less washed its hands of the Opera House and the Repertory and kindred societies had made representations to him for a Government subsidy. Mr Robertson said the Government granted assistance and the Opera House was restored. The terms of the assistance were easy for the Trust. Yet, said Mr Robertson, in the 1938 elections the Trust Lands Trust agreed to let the Opera House to the National Party for the night before the elections without knowing the date of the elections. For weeks the applications of any organisation wishing to hire the Opera House were subject to the reesrvation of the National Party. Mr Robertson said the National Party meeting fell on a shopping night and was a “frost” in any case. What should have been done was not done. A distinction had io be drawn between those public buildings which were for the benefit and use of the people and those run by private companies and others for profit. Referring to the need of greate? publicity of borough council proceedings, Mr Robertson said a paragraph had recently appeared in the Press stating that a loan of £B,OOO was being raised to erect a crematorium, yet the council’s proposals had not been publicly announced.

Mr Robertson spoke of his work as chairman of the Public Accounts Committee of the House of Representatives and of other administrative positions he had filled. He claimed that his qualifications were at least as good as Mr Kemp’s. Mrs J. Robertson, candidate for the Wairarapa Hospital Board, and Messrs H. M. mifh, J. A. Kennedy, A. C. Cretney, P. H. Shaw, K. Catherall and H. G. Scott, candidates for the Borough Council, also addressed thq electors. The meeting was presided Over by Mr J. P. Farrell.

An extended report of the council’s decision to erect a crematorium, and of an explanation of the proposals by the Borough Engineer, appeared in the “Times-Age” on June 23 last year. Further brief reference to the proposal appeared in our issues of December 15 and March 22.