Environment Southland chief executive Ciaran Keogh has pulled out of Stop the Stadium's meeting this month, and announced his recent anti-stadium opinion piece in the Otago Daily Times was not written in his professional capacity.
Mr Keogh argued in his article earlier this month the stadium was the wrong answer for ensuring the future prosperity of Dunedin, and that the city had developed "an increasingly inward and backward-looking stance".
In a press release yesterday, Environment Southland chairman Stuart Collie said the article should have been made in Mr Keogh's private capacity as an individual and an Otago ratepayer.
"Mr Keogh had also been invited to take part in a public debate in Dunedin on Sunday [March 29], but has decided to withdraw." Mr Keogh said he had to respect the council's view that his personal opinion was becoming too closely associated with the council. To avoid any ambiguity he had decided not to attend the meeting in Dunedin.
"I think I have had a fair crack at making my own point."
He had raised important debate about setting long-term priorities in the next few years, and there were plenty of people to keep going on the stadium, he said.
Mr Collie had cleared him to write the opinion piece, as long as he made it clear it was his own personal view.
The March 29 meeting at the Dunedin Town Hall, organised by Stop the Stadium, was to have featured Mr Keogh, with broadcaster Dougal Stevenson as master of ceremonies, Dunedin businessman Alistair Broad; Dunedin city councillor Dave Cull; Otago regional councillor Gerry Eckhoff; Dr Robert Hamlin, of the University of Otago School of Business; NHNZ chief executive Michael Stedman; and former Dunedin mayor Sukhi Turner.
Stop the Stadium president Bev Butler said Mr Keogh's expressed opinions would still be presented at the meeting.
"The fact he has been pressured into withdrawing from the Town Hall meeting should alert everyone as to the significance of what is at stake."
All speakers had been subjected to "greater or lesser pressure" since the meeting had been announced, but she did not expect any others to withdraw, she said.
Mr Collie said the media had linked Mr Keogh with Environment Southland but he had never purported to be commenting in his capacity as chief executive and had made it clear that he was expressing personal opinions.
"Environment Southland has not discussed the proposed stadium or its funding, and our council has no official position one way or the other on the issue.
"It is not for this council to comment on developments in a neighbouring region and Ciaran has never suggested that his comments were in any way reflective of this council's position," Mr Collie said.
