Lyndon Weggery
Dunedin Ratepayers and Householders' Association chairman
Lyndon Weggery has been accused by the group's secretary of
being ''the chairman of nothing''.
Association secretary Neville Poole told the Otago Daily
Times yesterday the group was ''not a group anymore''
because it had failed to hold an annual meeting for more than
two years.
It had also failed to file an annual financial statement with
the Companies Office in that time, despite a requirement to
do so each year, he said.
That meant Mr Weggery - who most recently addressed Dunedin
city councillors on behalf of the association at last week's
public forum - was representing only himself.
''He's running round saying he's still the chairman, but he's
the chairman of nothing,'' Mr Poole said.
The failure had prompted a letter to Mr Poole from the
Companies Office earlier this month, warning the association
could be deregistered unless the proper paperwork was filed,
he said.
He had written back to the Companies Office, advising the
association was ''basically finished''.
''I couldn't fill it in [paperwork] because we hadn't had a
meeting.''
A search of Companies Office records yesterday showed the
association was still registered, but had not filed a return
since its 2009-10 financial statement.
Companies Office staff did not respond to questions about the
association yesterday.
When contacted yesterday, Mr Weggery denied he was acting as
a one-man band while claiming to represent the city's
ratepayers.
It was true the association had not held an annual meeting in
two years, or filed returns as required, ''but we are
certainly well aware we need to'', he said.
''We may have been in technical breach, but certainly
functionally we are still very active,'' he said.
Asked how many members the association had, Mr Weggery said
there were about seven ''very active'' executive members
within a ''hard core'' of 20 to 30 members, including Mr
Poole.
However, the association represented all of Dunedin's
ratepayers, unless individuals wrote to the association to
opt out - something that had never happened, Mr Weggery said.
The association had chosen not to hold an AGM last year,
focusing instead on organising a public meeting that
coincided with the council's budget hearings.
He planned to do the same this year, but would include a
formal AGM as part of the proceedings and then file an annual
return.
Mr Poole said yesterday the association's ageing membership
had been in decline, and replacements had failed to
materialise in sufficient numbers.
He believed an enthusiastic organiser like former chairman
Syd Adie was needed.
''He was an organiser, he was everything ... ''Syd had
everything under control.''
Mr Adie resigned as chairman in 2009 and was replaced at an
AGM later that year by Mr Weggery, amid signs of tension
within the association over its future direction.
Mr Poole had been a member for more than a decade, but said
yesterday he would have nothing more to do with the
association.
''I'm finished. That's it.''
However, if the association's days were numbered, it could
yet be replaced by a new group.
Calton Hill resident Dennis Dorney told the ODT he was
planning a public meeting next Tuesday to discuss a move to
''resuscitate'' a ratepayers association.
The meeting would be held at the Dunedin Community House at
7pm, he said.
- chris.morris@odt.co.nz
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