The chief ombudsman has said that local councils are failing to meet their obligations under the Official Information Act.
RNZ: Local councils slammed for failing to supply information
Chief Ombudsman Peter Boshier said councils are not meeting their responsibilities under the Local Government Official Information and Meeting Act and that some councils seem to resent having to be held accountable.
“The performance of many councils is disappointing. Local government is absolutely fundamental to democracy, and in that respect the need for accountability and supply of information is just as strong as it is with central government, and yet many local councils don’t see it that way.
“We will commence a better process of publicising our data on complaints, giving better guidance and encouraging an earlier dispute resolution process so ratepayers who often have legitimate complaints can get to the end of the journey earlier than before.”
Last year 248 complaints were received under the act, Mr Boshier said.
There was a mix of a failure to supply information and other queries about process, he said.
People wanted to know why a council came up with certain rates, what had happened at meetings, and follow up information, for example.
The whole idea of the act was to make sure there was accountability and so ratepayers could participate in democracy.
The Dunedin City Council was slammed in an ODT editorial on Monday – see ODT editorial on secrecy and the OIA
In one case, the council is choosing not to answer questions which have been put to it by this newspaper for nearly a year about alleged bullying and other problems in its city property department. Despite Official Information Act requests, it is withholding a Deloitte report, saying it needs to protect privacy and also citing commercial sensitivity. Elected representatives and council staff all ran for cover when asked for comment. The ODT has now referred the matter to the Office of the Ombudsman.
This refusal to engage is a very troubling development. Stalling, fudging and engaging in sophistry make any organisation look bad.
Especially when the mayor and councillors campaigned on greater transparency. Politicians want transparency on successes, but want secrecy on failures and embarrassments – that’s a natural human trait, which is why the OIA is important to make sure they are transparent about everything, not just what they choose to reveal.
