Marryatt sacrifice for Parker’s incompetence

Many ratepayers have been saying there are problems at the Christchurch City Council, but the mayor has usually ignored them.

When independent bodies say you are not competent, it is serious. When it follows similar comments from Dame Margaret Bazley, then you need take notice.

This is Third-World stuff and it points to a failure of governance.

This failure of the mayor and his A team means they are complicit in much of the mess we’re facing. The ruins of a ripped apart city in chaos lie squarely at their feet. The chief executive now being offered as a sacrificial lamb is not good enough.

It is interesting how the National Government continues to tolerate this nonsense. When compared with the swift action the Government took to remove Environment Canterbury’s elected representatives, it is now beyond doubt it sacked the wrong council. So one must ask if the incompetence goes beyond the city council.

The best thing for this city now is for the mayor and his A team to retire from politics so we can concentrate on rebuilding our city without these distractions. If not, the voters need to bring to an end six long years of ineptitude.

NIGEL RUSHTON Central Christchurch

How not to govern

The ongoing issues around the granting of consents at the council have become farcical and a model of how not to run a city. Someone needs to be held responsible and that surely would be Tony Marryatt, as he is in charge of council procedures and processes.

I doubt he will front up, though, and I wonder if he has heard the phrase: ‘‘The buck stops here’’?

Bob Parker needs to stop the reassurance rhetoric and admit the problem is larger and worse than he has been trying to convey. JEFF HARRIS New Brighton

Marryatt to blame

Just for once I feel sorry for the Mayor, Bob Parker. Again he is the apologist for our Teflon-coated, grossly underperforming, overpaid town clerk, whose role is to head an organisation to provide services and information to us and councillors in a timely manner.

The council keeps spectacularly failing those objectives.

In the army, Marryatt I think would be court-martialled for gross dereliction of duty.

Marryatt must have a cast-iron contract to still be employed. T LIGHTFOOT

Mt Pleasant

No longer needed

Now that outside managers are being brought in by the Government to oversee the Christchurch City Council’s consenting, does this city still need a half-milliondollar-plus town clerk?

Will he resign, as did officials involved with Novopay? STEVE COX

St Albans

The devil among us?

Does anyone else smell sulphur in the Christchurch air? TONI JACKSON

Hoon