As a result of the investigations by the TPA, the Department of Local Government Sport and Culture acted, and an investigation was launched into the shire.

The investigation took some time and I believe council was told nothing would come of it.

Last month, the inquiry was tabled, in parliament.

The report findings showed there was just cause for concern in the lack of accountability and transparency in the administration, that decisions were made contrary to the Local Government Act and there was a lack in councillors understanding their role and that of council.

The report findings were extensive and included:

• More than half a million dollars spent on pursuing legal matters in court, much of which the report found questionable,
• Councillors failing in their role to oversee ratepayers’ funds,
• The inappropriate treatment by the CEO of a councillor and,
• The awarding of contracts contrary to WA local government law.

In reading the report there appeared a culture in council to accept information provided by the previous CEO, and in several situations the council failed to question the validity of the information supplied or question financial payments.

I believe it was important for the community to know how and what decisions were being made by council and the effect these decisions had on the financial viability of the shire.

The TPA investigation revealed questionable practices and The Herald informed the community.

However, some in the community disapproved of The Herald’s reporting.

It was claimed articles were untruthful, defamatory, and unjustifiably condemning and targeting of the then councillors and previous CEO.

Surprisingly, there were no legal challenges but the comments of unjust, untruthful, biased reporting by The Herald, relentlessly persisted.

There was also condemnation of the TPA’s constant questioning of council.

It was disappointing that it took an inquiry to reveal the inappropriate practices by the previous CEO and the inability of the previous council to uphold the principles of accountability and transparency as listed in the shire’s Community Strategic Plan.

I have been told that on social media councillors, who are still on council and were a part of the investigation, are being asked to resign.

These councillors are in control of their moral conscience indicator – it is their choice.

Either way, the community will have their chance to decide at the next election if they remain and decide to re-stand.

The Toodyay community was extremely fortunate to have had the TPA and The Herald to expose what was happening in the council and the administration.

It was disappointing that sections of the community did not support them and that they were criticised for their perspective and persistence.

The inquiry vindicated the actions of both The Herald and the TPA.

I congratulate the TPA for its persistence and resistance to calls to stop their actions and I also congratulate The Herald in publishing an accurate account of the issues.

Hopefully, the present council and administration will work to bring about change in a culture that led to the inappropriate practices as reported in the inquiry.

The same quantity of polony in Toodyay would have cost $13.98.
My 50km return trip to Northam for a fuel cost of, say, $5 means I still saved $5.50 on the Aldi purchase.
I am so grateful that we have the convenience of an IGA store in Toodyay but it has become increasingly expensive to buy locally.
The $200 to $250 I would spend in Toodyay would have cost me no more than $105 to $120 in Northam.
I understand that the Toodyay store has overhead costs but you can see the effect the price of a 500g log of polony can have on the ‘buy local and keep a local in business’ philosophy.
When you seek a more attractive price elsewhere, you might also look for savings on other items, thus effectively hurting Toodyay businesses.

How many people came and recognised this display? There were so many and of course Facebook went ‘off the radar’ so to speak.

Friends who had succumbed to this disease wanted to share that they were overwhelmed with the response by the local op shop wanting to be involved.

To the volunteers who gave up their time to share their concerns and compassion, and the ladies who brought so much joy to the visitors who enjoyed the display and bought their friends to enjoy it, you gave hope to some of those who were in a part of their life they did not wish to be and wanted to share that they loved what Toodyay was doing.

If we can save one person from breast cancer we can say “we have achieved”.

Mr Hamilton’s latest preposterous claim is that Australia, as a result of fear and loathing of China drummed up by the Australian Policy Institute, “has ordered $470 billion worth of submarines and F-35 warplanes and wants to acquire a new long-range missile capability to confront China …”.

That outrageous lie is dangerous and must be withdrawn.

The truth is that Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison recently announced a commitment to spend $270 billion over the next 10 years on defence capabilities; not $470 billion on planes and submarines as stated by OBJ.

It is a fact that former PM Kevin Rudd’s Australian Labor Party (ALP) defence minister John Faulkner announced on 25 November 2009 that the ALP government had ordered the first batch of fourteen F-35s at a cost of $3.2 billion.

He also announced that the purchase of a further 58 would be considered in 2012.
Australia has now ordered the 72 aircraft at a unit cost of about $A108 million.

The Morrison Government has ordered no more.

It is a fact that in 2007 Mr Rudd’s defence minister, Joel Fitzgibbon, directed his department to produce a white paper which was tabled in 2009.

Key elements were based on the assumption that “China will become increasingly dominant in Australia’s region and that Australia cannot rely on the US for protection” and, that the Royal Australian Navy is planned to undergo significant expansion and replace the current six Collins-class submarines with 12 new submarines.

Australia ordered these 12 submarines several years ago.

It has been admitted at a recent budget estimates committee that the costs of these 12 submarines, now not due in service until the mid-2030s, has blown out from a unit cost of $50 billion to $80 billion.

The Morrison Government has not ordered any more.

Maybe Mr Hamilton may now like to inform us what long-range missiles we will be buying for $470 billion because it is certainly not being spent on submarines and warplanes.

Next to Mr Hamilton’s whitewash and defence of the CCP’s ‘Vocational Education and Training Centres’ which, operating outside of the legal system, incarcerates Muslims, Christians and people of any other religion.

Researchers have used satellite imagery, witness accounts, media reports and official construction tender documents to classify the detention facilities into four tiers depending on the existence of security features such as high perimeter walls, watchtowers and internal fencing.

It found at least 61 detention sites had seen new construction and expansion work in the year to July 2020.

As the Western World’s condemnation of the incarceration of hundreds of thousands if not millions of Xinjiang Uyghurs mounted, the CCP allowed ABC and BBC journalists to visit a couple of the ‘schools’.

Security fencing in previous images had been removed and ‘barracks’ sanitised.
Strangely enough, everyone interviewed by the journalists sang from the same hymn-sheet: “I have deeply understood my mistakes and vow to be a better citizen when I go home.”

To any normal person, Mr Hamilton, that does look a little like unlawful detention and brain-washing.

We believed it was a very important decision for our community, our region and our membership of artists and helpers.

Then Toodyay Christmas shop owner Sean Byron said: “I will be your major financial sponsor – the community needs this.”

Something extraordinary happened right there and then.

In one single day, the generosity of local businesses and a call for award sponsorship fell into place.

New Toodyay Shire CEO Suzie Haslehurst responded enthusiastically to our invitation to open this year’s 15th anniversary exhibition as guest speaker.

We were elated when our amazing judges Peter Efford and Georgina Efford accepted our invitation and again knew something wonderful was in store.

Judging took more than three and a half hours.

Our opening night was warm and balmy and started early with the arrival of about 150 invited guests, mostly local people.

Friendships were renewed, spirits were lifted, people laughed and joined together again at VINO – all in the name of art.

The three-day exhibition over WA’s Queen’s Birthday long weekend attracted a total of about 2700 art lovers.

Our team of hard-working volunteers greeted visitors who viewed more than 230 pieces of beautiful, interesting creations, and enjoyed good wine, goodwill and a very funny auction on the opening night.

Thanks Coorinja owner Michael Woods and local real estate agent Lui Marcelli.

Thank you Suzie for such a positive and wonderful opening address.

Thank you Sean for your sponsorship, clever lighting and Best in Show Award won by Stephen Hill for A Bend in the River.

Thank you local WA Nationals MP Shane Love for again sponsoring an Acquisition Award for best Local, Regional Emerging Artist which was won by Sue Walker for Dusk Over the Simpson.

Thanks to sponsors Christmas 360, Makit Hardware, Toodyay and District’s Bendigo Community Bank, Toodyay Op Shop and Toodyay Theatre Group.

The exhibition sold an amazing 77 works of art and enabled our community to share a great local art experience that brought joy to many – it was unique and special.

Thank you everyone.

In case Mr Hamilton forgets, could I just remind him that:

• Xi Jinping made himself China’s President for life in 2018 – the classic act of a dictator;
• Ridiculous and aggressive claims on territories in the South China Sea far from China are being pursued and military bases established on what were previously half-submerged sandbars;
• Jimmy Lai – proprietor of the Apple Daily in Hong Kong – has been arrested because the People’s Republic of China (PRC) didn’t like what he was writing;
• Australian citizen Cheng Lei, who is a presenter on Chinese TV has been arrested on some pretext, as have other Australian citizens Stern Hu, Matthew Ng, Charlotte Chou and Yang Hengjun;
• Two Australian reporters had to evacuate China when their arrests appeared imminent after they were informed by the Chinese in an infamous midnight knock on the door that they were “banned from leaving the country” and,
• A visit by the Czech Senate President to Taiwan was called an “act of treachery” by the PRC which promised that the Czechs would pay “a heavy price”.

All this is on top of a PRC announcement that anyone of Chinese heritage should display primary loyalty to the PRC.

China is also trying to strong-arm Australia by accusing our country of treachery for having the temerity to seek an inquiry into the origins of the global Covid-19 pandemic.

This, as everyone knows, was followed for dubious reasons by sanctions against Australian producers.

Those sanctions directly affect some of our people in Toodyay, including our hard-working farmers, so it is hardly surprising that The Toodyay Herald has previously published letters complaining about Ol’ Blind Joe’s skewed view of the world.

Is China your idea of a friendly nation Mr Hamilton?

If it is then you might want to relocate to that country though I doubt the PRC would allow any ‘alternative thinking’ if you were to pick up a pen there.

Thank you also Carolyn Elphick of Makit Hardware, local WA Nationals MP Shane Love, Toodyay Op Shop, Toodyay Shire Council, Toodyay and Districts Bendigo Community Bank and Margaret Sommerville for their financial support.

Coorinja Winery owner Michael Wood and his daughter Gemma supported us yet again by sharing their beautiful venue.

Margaret Sommerville was amazing and overcame all sorts of difficulties to bring her vision all the way to the final event.

The beautiful displays were all her work, including supervising the team during the hanging and setting up.
We received 140 RSVPs for the opening night so I knew the launch would be huge – it was.

Frank Farmer and Nuala Ennis processed queues of people waiting to purchase their chosen pieces.

Award winners were overwhelmed to receive their certificates and cheques.
Hazel McKone’s response was: “Now I know I am an artist.”

Eleanor Frith, who provided the music for the night, was equally thrilled to receive recognition.

It was lovely to see how all the artists felt special and rewarded by the kind and supportive comments from the judges.

Crowds of visitors on the Queen’s Birthday long weekend continued to praise the exhibition, and sales were still being processed as we dismantled the exhibition after it closed on late Monday afternoon.

I am humbled by the support given by everyone; the members with their time and expertise, artists trusting us with their works and the appreciation shown by visitors and guests.

I am so very glad Sean gave us the encouragement to hold this event during the coronavirus pandemic.

It seems as though everyone needed something positive in their lives.

Thanks to everyone involved.