Council
17 December, 2025
Former mayors offer perspective after municipal monitor's report
Two former councillors who served terms as both councillors and mayors shared their insights into the role. Pam Clarke and Mark Radford shared with The Wimmera Mail-Times what it takes to hold public office, the highs and lows, plus the challenges and satisfaction of serving their community.
Ms Clarke served 14 years as a councillor on Horsham Rural City Council, and three of those terms were as mayor.
She said she felt it was timely to share her insights after reading the recent monitor's report into HRCC by Steven Kingshott.
While much has been said and written about the 2020-2024 council and the issues which led to the appointment of a second monitor during its term, Ms Clarke said she believed issues were already evident during the 2012-2016 council term and escalated during the 2016-2020 term.
Some of these were, in some ways, inherited by the 2020-2024 council, she said.
Reflecting on the issues that faced past terms of council, she said it became obvious to her that there were specifics that made serving on local government with HRCC during that time challenging.
Mrs Clarke said she knew of a small group within the community, at that time, who sought to undermine the council's work while having little or no information.
Media
"I believe that we now have fair and balanced journalism,” she said.
“This was not the case during the 2016-2020 and 2020-2024 election terms, and this in both print and social media had a significant impact on the accuracy or otherwise of the information being presented to the public.”
Some print media, Mrs Clarke said, had contributed to dividing the community in the past.
Ms Clarke said she was targeted on social media during her terms in local government simply because people had different opinions regarding council decisions, and that, she says, comes from a lack of knowledge about the mayor's role.
"The mayor does not make the decisions; a mayor is the chairperson, and regardless of whether they agree with the decisions made by council or not, they must uphold the process that leads to the decisions made," she said.
Matters that are considered by councillors at weekly meetings before the council meetings include planning reports, financial reports and budgets, technical reports, and social impact reports before any decisions are made.
This is where balanced media reporting is so important, she says, because media reports can often be the source of information a large majority of the community depends on.
Budget
She said she believed that inexperience and the lack of understanding of how to read a council budget had led to misinformation, which she had witnessed being shared at council meetings, and had been discussed in the community, resulting in claims that there was a black hole in the budget.
The monitor's report, released recently after a six-month investigation, referred to money being moved around between projects, but did not identify any missing money.
She gave credit to the finance team and said, "This council is one of the most financially responsible councils in Victoria and has always had a low debt rate.
Not always the loudest voice
Mark Radford served as a councillor on HRCC continuously from 2008 to 2020, with three terms as mayor; his first from 2014-2015, his second in 2018-2019, and his third in 2019-2020.
He told the Mail-Times that during his terms on council, he learned that it was not always the loudest voice that made the biggest impression or got the job done.
He recalled a time when council was considering a pedestrian crossing in Horsham CBD, "there was an outcry," he said.
"People said it would muck up traffic flow."
So in the consultation with the public, he learned that there was a small group of elderly members of the community who were becoming scared of crossing at that spot, and in addition, there were young parents who would not let their children cross there either.
"The quiet, small voice guided me," he said.
He said he learned along the way to listen to people who were smarter than him, seek feedback, and then think it through.
"And I did this with all of the decisions facing me as a councillor," he said.
In his opinion, councillors stand for council to make a difference, but are not experts in every field they are asked to decide about; that's for the experts. Once the information has been collated, councillors can then decide on what is best for the community.
"Reading and being willing to read everything required of you and more, when you join the council, is absolutely paramount," he said.
During his terms in office, he said it was interesting to watch Horsham move from a country town to a small rural city.
"As smaller towns get smaller, Horsham must continue to put its hand up for Federal funding to keep moving forward," he said.
Mr Radford said he believed that councillors must be visionaries.
"What may be best for now will not be in five to ten years; councils must have the ability to look ahead and plan accordingly," he said.
While believing this, he said he also accepts that this can be a challenge because not everyone can do that.
Build it, and they will come
"I'll give you an example," he said.
"Two major projects by HRCC in Horsham were opposed vehemently by some sections of the community. The Aquatic Centre and the Town Hall," he said.
Mrs Clarke agreed there was public outcry about the two projects, but neither has gone on to be well-received and utilised by the community.
Mr Radford said that at times like this, councillors needed to be able to see ahead even when it felt like the community was against them.
"Councillors must consider the expert advice and decide accordingly, and not always be swayed by the loudest voice," he said.
"I was at an event after the Town Hall was completed and being enjoyed by the community, and a man walked up to me and said he had opposed the project, but he had been wrong. He said it was the best thing for Horsham, and he apologised," Mr Radford said.
"For someone to be bold enough to say they were wrong takes some courage, and I really admired that," he said.
Bullying
Mrs Clarke said she noted that the monitor, Steven Kingshott, referred to bullying and harassment claims, and she had witnessed these during her terms in council.
She referred to the numerous Freedom of Information requests that were often withdrawn but still caused stress and intimidation as a form of bullying, and, as the monitor reported, required the council to provide professional psychological support to some people.
In addition to these actions, the Local Government Inspectorate received 87 complaints about the 2020-2024 council, almost 2 per month during that council's term.
The monitors' report highlighted racism towards the former CEO, Sunil Bhalla, and said she had witnessed this on several occasions.
"... being in a position of authority, there are times when staff may not be happy with decisions made, especially if it affects them," she said.
The monitors' report stated that while there had been complaints about Mr Bhalla, they had not been supported by the majority of the staff.
Ms Clarke said she stands by her claims that Mr Bhalla was not afforded procedural process or natural justice.
Human nature
Mr Radford was on holiday when he spoke to the Mail-Times, and he said," I am looking out of my window where we are staying, and the beach is being dug up.
"I can imagine part of the community is excited about it, and the others are saying it's a waste of money.
"That's just human nature, we all have different views, and it's no different when you are on council. You have to weigh up all the information and decide accordingly," he said.
Mr Radford said the mayoral gig for him was a privilege, but for now, he sees his role as being an outside encourager.
Concerns for local government
Ms Clarke said she had grave concerns for local government with the yearly increase in dysfunctional councillors and councils across the whole state.
In addition, and perhaps a contributing factor in the high turnover of councillors, could be that there is no avenue for councillors who are bullied or harassed to be protected by a legislative system under the Local Government Act, she told the Mail-Times.
"Without this, our current system does not work, and good people will not stand," she said.
"Don't let anyone try to tell you Misogyny is dead, it is well and truly alive and kicking, especially in local government."
However, this being said, Ms Clarke said, "Being a councillor and Mayor is still one of the best things I have ever done, and I do not for one minute regret it. I learnt so much about people, my community, and, more importantly, about myself."