Cr Robert Fittock curious about my sex

It’s been a crazy week, ending up with a somewhat severe looking photograph of me on the front page of the Fremantle Herald. I never imagined that my fifteen minutes of fame would involve a Fremantle councillors curiosity or fascination about my genitals.

The huge headline “Fittock under fire for ‘sleazy’ email” was undoubtedly an embarrassment to Fremantle council. The email in question was and continues to be an embarrassment to me. Although I am offended and angry I am also quite willing to bring it out into the public arena.

Apart from the obvious intention to belittle or insult me, the sexual undertones suggest a bullying implication. If he had said it or even emailed it to his like-minded colleagues it might have been viewed as schoolboy smut or immaturity. Sending to all councillors was disrespectful and as one person mentioned it had a subtle sense of intimidation; a covert suggestion that this is what happens when you cross him.

Initially I wrote a somewhat provocative and critical letter to all councillors in reference to the decline of the Fremantle markets. The exact copy is on this blog under the title of back yard piss up. Yes, I acknowledge that this is a little crass but deliberately so for effect.

Only three councillors replied. Cr’s Lauder and Dowson wrote to express understanding of my concerns and frustration. Cr Fittock wrote nothing more than a sarcastic quip about my blog and it was something along the line of the internet being the dunny wall of the world. (Dunny is Australian slang for toilet)

He then shot of his email to the mayor, CEO and all councillors:
“Don’t ya just love her…if in fact she has a womb…hermaphrodite maybe…or just someone with a teensy weensy weenie.”

I am not so precious that I get offended by dirty jokes and I really don’t care if people blow off steam in-house. It is my opinion that a joke must be clever or funny and this is clearly neither.

This says nothing about me but it does say an awful lot about cr Fittock. Sigmund Freud, Carl Jung or indeed any psychiatrist or psychologist would have their work cut out in analysing this subconscious.

Cr Fittock is an elected member and is expected to represent the people. When he was asked by the Herald to comment he said he had never spoken to me personally and his ‘flowery’ wording was his way of asking whether the blogger was a woman. He followed this stupid statement with “If I need to apologise I will but I wont do it until I get advice.

He then complained that he should be able to email colleagues without fearing his comments will leak. He said he would lodge an official complaint with the CEO.
(Interesting priority – good luck with that. Must be reassuring to the public that you put yourself first and appear oblivious to the trouble you’re in and the trouble you have created.)

The incident happened over a week ago. He has had time to prepare a reasonable statement and if this is the best he can do then we can only wonder about the mans intelligence or right to represent his constituents. I have not had an apology from him and after that comment, why would I accept one now? I will mention that Cr’s Lauder, Haney, Adeane and deputy mayor Dowson have all contacted me and apologised on behalf of council.

Adele Carles called me as soon as she read the article to see how I was and offered assistance and support. No wonder she blitzed mayor Tagliaferri at the last bi-election. His only comment to me was something along the lines of what email are you referring to?

The Herald quoted him as saying that the comments and their public disclosure would both undergo ‘due process’ but he too was concerned councillors might feel hesitant about open expression if they couldn’t trust that internal emails would remain private. He foolishly continued with “There have been emails in the past that were seriously on the edge but they haven’t gone outside.

When I commented that cr’s Dowson and Lauder has expressed their embarrassment and put forward their apology other councillors turned on them in a witch-hunt manner and accused them of leaking the email to me. In-house the biggest debate was about the leak not the offense!

The Herald did get comment from the councillors who were still focused on the main issue and not playing into the diversionary tactics of the others:
“Sleazy, almost a sexual put down,” Cr Georgie Adeane said.

“It's belittling for everyone on council…It’s horrible” said Shirley Mackay, a mayoral aspirant. “I can understand someone calling for his resignation.”

Cr Donna Haney was “Disturbed” such comments could be “made by an elected member about someone in our community.”

Cr Les Lauder was “utterly disgusted” adding “I don’t believe that such a person should be on council.”

Although this is a very ‘unsexy’ cause, I will push on and allow my face to expose this type of nastiness. It seems to me that Fremantle council is divided in many ways and it is apparent to me that one team works so hard and ethically and the other works defensively, neutrally or politically. I don’t want to be involved with politics but it appears to me that it is always the same people who step up and show themselves.

Fremantle is about to elect a new mayor and of the in-house aspirants Shirley Mackay was the only one to comment on this issue and didn’t run for cover.

Pettitt, a good mate of Fittock was silent, overall they all did the old Tafliaferri shoe shuffle or played under the radar. Perhaps it would be wise to bring in someone from outside the clique. I fear a Tagliaferri protégé will allow this old boys club to continue.

I still haven’t had any real answer to my original email about the markets but Colin Wright challenged Brad Pettitt to put his ideas to the public in plain black and white. Brad wrote to the editor of the Herald and this is what he said:

‘As Colin Wright’s letter (Pettitt’s too little too late, Sept 5, 2009) attests the recent angst over the markets lease made it very difficult for a useful dialogue to occur between all parties.

Now the head lease and rental issues have been resolved I hope council can work in a more productive fashion to revitalise the markets (the Growers Market is an exciting first step) while addressing stallholders concerns over the transition.

Is that the best you can do Brad? All parties exclude the stallholders completely and the Growers Market looks like a school fete.

Robert Fittock. No time to read mail.

I was a bit surprised by last week’s letter to the editor by Cr Robert Fittock. His indifference to the plight of the stallholders has been obvious but to publicly state his desire to get over it and move on shows how oblivious he is to the long term repercussions of the real issues.

When hundreds of public submissions were sent to council protesting against the Murdoch application, he openly stated that he didn’t have time to read all that mail. What does that mean? Is that the attitude we expect from the people we elect to represent us?

The Murdoch’s were granted the lease because they stated:

Commitment to continue to provide a low cost trading environment despite capital expenditure and trading initiatives

At Fremantle Markets, we will create WA's gourmet heaven. A food retailing, entertainment and educational centre that will rival...
More efficient and effective use of the community asset, but retaining existing traditional 3 day trading market.
We support internal changes but only if space is used effectively, maximize stallholder/customer interaction.
Number of stalls must not decrease.
To provide goods and services that exceeds the shopper’s expectations.
To provide quality, range, uniqueness and value for money
Develop range of local produce - uniquely West Australian Goods; handmade on site to encourage interactivity.

It’s easy to see why the stallholders feel betrayed. Rents have increase by around 80%.
They have been relocated to inferior positions, out priced and forced to leave; unable to sell and at a loss of livelihood and goodwill, or evicted.
‘Gourmet Heaven’ is nothing more than food served in paper bags.
Trading hours keep changing.
Artisans have been priced out.
The markets are being sectioned into two separate parts.

Above all else though, the markets are already showing signs of decline and chaos. The new rents will set a new bar for rents throughout Fremantle and the whole community will be picking up the tab in increased prices across the board.

Thankfully, most of the councilors do not take the easy or disinterested view of Cr Fittock. If a business plan is nothing more than paper work with no accountability and promises are meaningless then where does that take the future of Freo?