How would you feel if all communication to your elected representatives was blocked?
That is what happens in Auckland Council.
For eight months now, my emails to Local Board members or Councillors have been intercepted by bureaucrats. The Council claims this is a legitimate process referred to as “filtering” but I see it as very akin to the climate that existed in Nazi Germany. Why should a senior bureaucrat have the power to decide what mail addressed to the advertised contact addresses for Councillors should or should not be passed onto them? Councillors were not made aware of this nor offered an opportunity to stop their mail being blocked. It was simply done as fait accompli.
In Nazi Germany censorship was used so that the hierarchy decided what the public would see, hear and read. Criticism or dissention sometimes led to a trip to a concentration camp. Neighbours were encouraged to pot neighbours to the hierarchy.
I am sure many returned servicemen from World War 2 would be shocked to hear what is going on in Auckland Council and those already in their graves would bemoan their sacrifices if they could speak.
It appears Auckland Council is not alone.
www.nzherald.co.nz/news/print.cfm?objectid=10865181
Accountability in Auckland Council 