STIRLING City councillors are really clinging to the past instead of facing squarely the problem they have created with their high-density urbanisation program.
I bet that not a single councillor actually lives in one of the cramped home units not big enough to accommodate all the trappings of our modern lifestyle; let alone provide a decent home to families with children.
Sure, the waste problem is caused mainly by poor families, but not confined to State housing homes. It is exacerbated by the fact that nowadays many residents have to shift frequently to secure a job, as well as by our consumers’ society where people are conditioned to discard serviceable items to make room for the latest innovations.
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Essentially the root of the problem stems from the councillors’ belief that they and their administrators are in the business of providing services to residents, instead of having been elected to provide the residents with the services they need.
To make matters worse, in my area there are a few grossly neglected road verges that are simply an invitation to dump waste.
It is indeed an odd situation where the ratepayers who pay the councillors’ handsome emoluments are considered by them to be delinquents who should be penalised.
The answer to the problem is for the City of Stirling to budget for some flexible waste collecting units that pick up discarded items on demand or by regular patrols in the densely populated areas. Leaving bulky items strewn on road verges for weeks is highly irresponsible.
After all, cash should not be a problem as the City now collects rates from four residents where it used to be one only.
Frank Schenk, Osborne Park