A training program designed to groom leaders, and possibly councillors, in Wangaratta has been labelled as “insular and well-connected” to one side of the 2013 council dramas.
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Three community leadership programs will run in the city during the first half of 2016.
The training is run by Alpine Valleys Community Leadership Program, which is chaired by former mayor Anthony Griffiths and included former Wangaratta Council director Graham Nickless on its board until last year.
Victorian Farmers Federation Wangaratta president Greg Mirabella told a local government forum on Wednesday that several of his members were not happy with the council paying the AVLP to run the sessions.
“Part of the cause of what happened (with the council in 2013) was because of the fault lines of local politics and the groups,” he said.
“What you’re doing is you’re getting an organisation which is quite insular, quite closed, very closely connected and linked in local politics, to deliver some training which as far as I can see, is by people over whom there is no scrutiny or transparency.”
Mr Mirabella said he would be in favour of training conducted by GOTAFE or the Victorian government.
“Of the board of that organisation, there are no people who have actually had private sector management experience,” he said.
“My perception is this is not good.”
Wangaratta council executive officer Brendan McGrath said the AVLP was a “well-credentialled group” and denied the leadership training was solely for prospective councillors.
“It is a community leadership program, a civic participation program,” he said.
Local Government Minister Natalie Hutchins said she was in favour of leadership training before Wangaratta’s “return to democracy”.
“When I arrived today and got briefed on it and how successful it has been, I thought it was fantastic,” she said.
“I’m not going to comment about the process that was undertaken to engage.
“I would have thought a local group that provided this sort of training would be a priority.”
