This disdain inflicted on the former councillors and communities resulted in the resignation of the former administrator and the consequent sacking Of Ken Trethewey. Can the now administrator advise a future comprehensive report on the gains or intended gains and advantages together with costs associated with the current workings?

I fail to see the intended ultimate goal other than a carry-on of duties under dictatorship. Why would one even contemplate what is being put forward for the future when all requirements set by the government before the council amalgamation were met. then overruled, by dictatorship  to meet their own requirements; currently leaving us with no council or democracy? 

What number of councillors will be reinstated and how will the appointments be concluded with equilibrium and evenness of composure and calm when a current disparity in council rates and wages is evident? Can both townships be appeased after the government's cream has soured, there are no more assets to sell, one wonders if privatisation of small towns is the long-term thought? I'm an 84-year-old, give me the advantage to visualise the future. I don’t want to use a local politican’s phrase: “I believe”, give us something definite, please.

I attended the rally concerning forced council mergers in Gundagai’s Carberry Park on May 12. Despite being given adequate notice of the rally both Katrina Hodgkinson and John ‘no-show” Barilaro failed to attend. The reasons they gave for the non-attendance was treated with scepticism. Let’s look at Mr Barilaro’s credibility.  

In his campaign speech at the Bombala RSL Club on the March 18, 2015 he promised to oppose council mergers. He told the gathering that, “Let me be clear, there will be no forced amalgamations in this region...”  And, on February 10 this year, when a large number of irate citizens, including myself, converged in front of Mr Barilaro’s office in Queanbeyan to front him on the forced mergers issue. He was nowhere to be seen. 

However, he did meet with a small delegation at Gundagai a couple of days later on February 12. At the conclusion of that meeting I asked Mr Barilaro why he never showed up at the Queanbeyan meeting. Before he could answer Ms Hodgkinson intervened and told me that he had made previous arrangements some three months prior to attend another engagement. I was later reliably informed that this much more pressing ‘engagement’ was having lunch with Ms Hodgkinson at the Junee Licorice and Chocolate Factory. When he never turned up at the rally at Carberry Park, this was the straw that broke the camel’s back. But, what about Premier Gladys Berejiklian?

At an election campaign meeting on March 19, 2015 she made the following statement in regards to forced council mergers, “There will be nothing people will be forced into; it’s really a conversation that councils are having”.  Try telling that now to the people of Gundagai and Cootamundra. 

Why is there so much distrust in politicians? We have had promises that there would be no forced council amalgamations from the following:  Barry O’Farrell, the then leader of the Liberal Party, Andrew Stoner, former leader of the National Party, Paul Toole, former minister for Local Government, Gladys Berejiklian, leader of the Liberal Party and, John Barilaro, current leader of the National Party.  

All the above have broken their promises that were made either before or after the election. Even Blind Freddy can see that unless the government reverses its hated forced council merger policy immediately, then it is facing certain political annihilation at the next elections in 2019.