Ray Parker, another Kent blogger, pointed out on his blog recently that Peter Gilroy KCC Chief Exec had written a letter which appeared in this weekends “Kent on Sunday”, now I don’t know whether you share my view of the role of government employees, whether local or national I feel they should confine their opinions to themselves or their colleagues or political masters.
I share Ray Parkers concerns about impartiality, now I don’t care how important Peter Gilroy thinks he is or even how others judge him but its my feeling that he should keep his views to himself unless of course he has been asked to comment by his democratically elected bosses.
Now just to clarify, by Put up, I mean he himself should perhaps stand for public office once he retires from KCC or Shut up by which I mean he should keep his views to himself whilst employed by the Kent Taxpayer.
Still what do I know?
Well what do you expect, Mr Gilroy would support this and me as taxpayer knows, that most do not, and having been given figures concerning the “savings” frankly don’t share his view.
Finally if Peter Gilroy wants anyone to take his views seriously why doesn’t he write as Peter Gilroy member of the public like tony flaig of Bignews Margate.
Clearly he got away with renewing the Kent TV contract when the election was on so he must think that he has a right to publish his views in the local press.
ReplyDeleteBut his defence letter is just plain daft. He has forgotton the start up costs of Kent TV and all the other costs of KCC staff to support and promote Kent TV. Example, KCC visited schools to try and promote Kent TV. It was not just the £1.2 millions of the contract. He should have the figures. He should also know that any savings in promotional budgets can only be attributed to ALL local online services including KCC's own web site. Its impossible for anybody to attribute the savings to Kent TV it more likely it was kent.gov.uk. Can Mr Gilroy state whether it was a real savings of the million from the promotional budget? ie has the spending fallen by the million?. Has the spending on kent.gov.uk increased?
He may thinh that 2 million hits it a good result but in internet terms its very poor. Just look at youtube hits and even some of thanets local bloggers who spent nought on promotion!
Kent TV is poor value for money and KCC should accept that the original plan for it to be self financing has been a complete failure.
No doubt KCC will put Kent TV out to tender again and try and get the costs reduced. Carter and Gilroy cannot be seen as the promoters of a project that has been a financial blunder.
Tony
ReplyDeleteI take it you recall that Supt George Rogers had his own Isle of Thanet Gazette column "View from Fort Hill" and in addition had letters published in the Gazette naming members of the public ?
In one such letter he named William True as a dissatisfied complainer against police and wrote that all Mr True's complaints had been investigated and found to be without substance.
My advice to you Tony is to keep a copy of published letters because they can come back to bite their author.
Mr True was in fact the neighbour to the 6th Thanet Gun range and his complaints were never investigated because Kent Police refused to investigate their own officers who used the range.
Now fast forward to 2001 and the Telegraph report announcing that Scotland Yard wanted to interview Mark YATES Head of a bodyguard training company Scotland Yard said had live fire trained Al Quedda suspects at English gun ranges.
In fact at the time of Mr True's complaints Mr YATES had not founded his own company but was still working with James SHORTT (International Bodyguard Assn and International Law Enforcement Training Agency ... both allegedly companies not properly registered at Companies House etc)
Those latter organisations allegedly used two Kent ranges to train unidentified middle easterners in live fire ... Stone Lodge at Dartford where also off duty Kent Police are suspected to have been on the "Instructor" staff payroll and a certain Thanet range.
If Supt Rogers had kept his pen in his pocket it would be all the more difficult, now a reckoning is beckening, to accuse him of lying, negligence and misleadfing the public.
So Tony .. smile on the face of the tiger. Smile when the abuse flows ("According to Irritating Bloke Kent Police are responsible for everything from the IRA to International terrorism" .. remarks like that from a typical Thanet pratt ... Is he on about that gun range again ... from another typical Thanet pratt)
Mike Fuller, Chief constable, seemed to think police were not involved in these bodyguard training organisations.
I hope the photo I recently sent him is properly perceived as not at all helpful to his cause.
Keep yer copy of the public servant's letter and wait to see if you can use it to BITE !
Is he a ghost-buster?
ReplyDeleteAccording to the KM it's not a done deal after all!
ReplyDeletehttp://www.kentonline.co.uk/kentonline/news/2009/november/16/doubts_over_future_of_kent_tv.aspx