APRIL 2023
Australia’s National Local Government Newspaper
Honouring a great Australian The Northern Grampians Shire Council and Victorian Government have immortalised the late journalist, comedian and disability rights advocate Stella Young in bronze. The statue of Stella is the first of six artworks to be unveiled over coming months as part of the Victorian Women’s Public Art Program – a $1 million investment. A creative collective of artists Sarah Barton, Jillian Pearce, Janice Florence and Fayen D’Evie, alongside Lynne and Greg Young, developed the vision for the project and local sculptor Danny Fraser created it. The statue, part of a program to recognise more women for their contribution to Victorian society, has now taken pride of place in Cato Park in Stawell becoming a popular attraction and talking point in the region not just furthering discussions on women’s achievements but also disability rights. “The project has, for us, highlighted how much work needs to be done to ensure true accessibility,” Northern Grampians Shire Council Mayor Kevin Erwin said. “Let us all continue to appreciate and learn from Stella by recognising her achievements, remembering to push boundaries, fighting for what you believe in and always speaking our truth.” Story page 2
Madi Young blows a kiss to the statue of her sister, Stella Young, in Stawell.
‘Not duly elected’ Current North-West Ward councillors will not lose their positions despite the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (VCAT) ruling Milad El-Halabi - who resigned from the council in 2022 - was not duly elected as a councillor for the ward in the Merribek City Council’s 2020 local council general elections. The tribunal made final orders in the proceeding, giving effect to its judgment in which it held that Mr El-Halabi benefited from ballot tampering conducted during the postal election for North-West Ward. VCAT further held that the 2020 election of the three other councillors to North-West Ward was not affected by the inclusion of fraudulent ballots in the count. The effect of VCAT’s decision is that the current councillors in North-West Ward maintain their positions on the council. Acting electoral Commissioner Dana Fleming welcomed the decision validating the VEC’s concerns and in turn restoring confidence in the electoral process. “In October 2020, our rigorous systems and alert staff detected some votes had been tampered with in the North-West Ward postal election for what was then Moreland City Council. By law, the VEC was required to declare the
result of that election,” Ms Fleming said. By law, the VEC was required to proceed with the election and declare the result as soon as practicable, despite its concerns about the validity of some ballot papers. Immediately after declaring the result, the VEC applied to VCAT for an inquiry into the election. Under the Local Government Act 2020, VCAT is responsible for hearing disputes about the validity of local government elections. The VEC had to comply with all its statutory obligations in relation to the election (including a countback) while supporting VCAT’s inquiry into the validity of the election. “We immediately alerted Victoria Police to this matter, and within an hour of the election result being declared, we referred the matter to VCAT for an inquiry into the validity of the election,” she said. “Since that point, we have worked tirelessly to ensure that democracy is upheld for
the North West Ward community. The VEC expended considerable time and resources in gathering and interpreting evidence to support this inquiry. I also note that all candidates were necessarily made parties in the matter. Their contributions ultimately assisted VCAT to reach its decision. “Prior to the council elections in 2020, inquiries into the validity of elections were conducted by a Municipal Electoral Tribunal, which was stood up and given a strict timeframe to consider any disputes from elections. The VEC will make recommendations on the efficacy of the new system of review, noting that the additional obligations on VCAT coincided with increased pressures on the court system from the pandemic.” Ms Fleming stated that she was confident that, based on the countback process that took place following Mr El-Halabi’s resignation from the council in February 2022, with votes redistributed according to voters’ preferences, the
current councillors in North-West Ward reflect the will of voters. This is supported by expert evidence presented before the inquiry, which was accepted by VCAT. “While the proceeding’s outcome does not change the current council, it is worth noting that had Mr El-Halabi not already resigned from his position, the effect of this decision would be to remove him as a councillor,” Ms Fleming said. “What this matter has demonstrated is that the VEC’s processes to protect democracy and electoral integrity work. However, we won’t be complacent, and we will work closely with Victoria’s local government sector, the relevant law enforcement agencies, and Australia Post to prevent this from occurring again.” She said the VEC would not make public comment on the criminal proceedings related to this matter.