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Almost a week after assuming the position of Mayor of Rockhampton Regional Council from the Queensland Electoral Commission, Chris Hooper has not been appointed to the role – and he has accused the state government and local council of stalling the process to have.
Earlier this month, the Mayor of Rockhampton resigned after being found guilty of wrongdoing, prompting the Queensland Local Government Minister to announce an upcoming amendment to the Local Government Act.
The laws currently provide that a seated mayor or city councilor will be replaced by the next higher election candidate if he dies or resigns within the first 12 months of his term in office.
That meant eccentric barefoot driver Chris Hooper was automatically nominated as he was runner-up and the only other mayoral candidate for the city in this year’s local elections.
The state government has vowed to change the law that will trigger a by-election and from 1. December is to be introduced in Parliament.
Mr Hooper said he expected to be appointed at a Rockhampton Regional Council meeting on Tuesday, but the council announced today that after talks with the state government, the mayor’s position will not be on the agenda.
« We really know they’re just trying to pull it out day in and day out for Annastacia to change the plot.
« I’m the duly elected person, you made the law, Margaret [Strelow] left and now you don’t like it.
« You don’t like me because I’m on the left or in somewhere . . . ‘it doesn’t fit our bill’. «
In a statement, the Department of State Development, Infrastructure, Local Government and Planning said that the process of filling a position as mayor or city councilor involves a series of steps.
In the case of the Rockhampton Mayor position, steps still need to be taken to appoint Mr. Hooper Mayor.
Neil Fisher, incumbent Mayor of Rockhampton, said the council is subject to the « whim » of the state government and is closely following the steps of the Local Government Act.
« That puts us in a position to this day where state government legislation and emerging new laws are part of this discussion. .
« We actually track everything through to the storyline and also watch out for the storyline changes.
Cr Fisher said councilors would be informed of the law changes this week and until then the mayor position would not be discussed at any council meeting.
« We have existing laws, we have new laws and the retroactive effect of the new laws, » he said.
« We’ll know more tomorrow, and we’ll know more when we get to the end of the week. «
Anthony White, who lives in Rockhampton and is friends, has been helping Mr. Hooper since his new fame.
He said he helped handle media inquiries and social media because Mr. Hooper does not have a computer.
« He faces the media barefoot. He’ll be like the next Paul Hogan. Just a different version. «
Mr White said the Australians loved the outsider and they didn’t like him when someone changed the rules.
« I think he’s going to be a great mayor. He has a lot of ideas for Rockhampton. «
This service may contain material from Agence France-Presse (AFP), APTN, Reuters, AAP, CNN and the BBC World Service that is copyrighted and cannot be reproduced.
AEST = Australian Eastern Standard Time, 10 hours before GMT (Greenwich Mean Time)
Rockhampton, Council, Mayor, Local Government
World News – AU – ‘You have stalled’: Rocky Mayor-elect Chris ‘Pineapple’ Hooper installs the state government
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– Rockhampton& mayor-elect Chris Hooper accuses the state government of stalling his appointment
– Mayoral Vacancy Update
– Hooper accuses council of postponing mayor’s appointment
Ref: https://www.abc.net.au
