Upper Hutt Library Changes

Jan from Ebdentown

A PERSONAL STATEMENT

How disappointed am I that I have had to compel through The Official Information Act information that which was ours of right?

I am hurt and offended that the Local Body that is supposed to administer our ratepayer funds is reluctant to engage or be transparent and accountable for how it spends our monies.
• What else are they hiding?

I am hurt and insulted that the people who are paid to administer our funds or are elected to be there for us, to be the interface between us and Council and visa-versa, ignore me, insult my intelligence and downright lie to me, and through me, insulting you!

I am shocked by the astonishing lack of any professionalism by the Council staff and equally appalled by the Mayor and Councillors lack of depth of knowledge or enquiry in accepting whatever rubbish they are told without proper evidence or research.
• What other services in our city have been compromised by this slack attitude?
• I have lost complete trust in all but a few of our representatives.
All the women Councillors (interestingly enough) are doing what they have sworn to do, it is the men (apart from Steve Taylor, who at least replied, sadly he was really not interested in representing me/us on this issue) who are tardy to the point of possibly breaking their oaths of office, they have certainly broken faith with the ratepayers of Upper Hutt in respect of this issue.

Every Civic Building, everything Council, every stick of furniture, technology, piece of paper, ink, printer, person, park, goal post, swing and every other thing that is Council is paid for by our rates it is ours.
• Not theirs ours.

So here I sit, a pensioner, going back and forth, using my own personal funds and resources to action my end of this, my time and energy, to compel people who I pay, who are resourced by my rates, who sit in building paid for by me, to get information paid for by me, with legal department geared to cover them and advise them how not to give us what we am entitled to, if they can possibly avoid it.
• Then there is me, not able to afford the internet, just my printer, ink, (gifts from my Son) paper, time and whatever wits I can muster on a good day - paying for both sides of this back and forth every time I engage with my Council, that I also pay for and who are already paid to administer and represent my best interests BUT DON’T
Who sit there and hope that as they ‘out resource me’ I will get tired, run out of my resources and just go away.
• Using everything I pay for against me!!

All I want is to be able to get some books out of my Library, as I was able to do for 47years, up to and until these changes.
I want those of us who search by genre only or who are totally confused by the labyrinthine, counter intuitive maze that is adult fiction - for us to be seen and recognised, validated and offered the same chance as everyone else to be included in an accessible to all Library Members and Users in other words Ratepayers (as it used to be)!
• Give us back a professional TRADITIONAL LIBRARY with genre sections!

I am so deeply, deeply resentful! (Can you tell?)