A letter to the editor ("Which is it, lies but cannot recall?", Leader, 12 August), may have suggested to some readers that the Georges River Council General Manager and Director Legal Services had behaved inappropriately in dealing with questions put to them by Councillor Badalati at a council meeting on 28th October, 2019.
In fact, as reported on 29 July 2020, Councillor Badalati was censured over the questions he put, following an independent review which found that they amounted to misconduct. The Office of Local Government, in a letter to the Mayor and Councillors dated 7 November 2019, has also said that the questions raised by Councillor Badalati, relating to an investigation into an alleged code of conduct complaint, should not be raised in Council meetings, nor should Council staff be questioned about them. Further, having reviewed the webcast of the meeting, the Office of Local Government expressed in writing its concern about the potential impact of the questioning on Council staff.
The Leader apologises to the Council's General Manager and Director Legal Services for publishing material which may have impugned their handling of questions at the meeting, which it has since been determined should not have been put to them.
The General Manager and Director Legal Services maintain that their actions in responding to Councillor Badalati's questions were, at all times, professional, lawful and appropriate, and The Leader does not suggest otherwise.
