Tuesday, 15 May 2001

Media release

Reba Meagher has mislead her constituents and demonstrated her hypocrisy in a flyer distributed to Cabramatta residents last weekend.

The flyer, from Ms Meagher’s office claimed there will soon be 220 police officers fighting drugs and crime compared to 84 based at Cabramatta during 1995.

"Ms Meagher has counted the 90 officers to be based in the Greater Hume region, which stretches from Campbelltown to Blacktown to Cabramatta – they will not be permanently based in Cabramatta" said Fairfield Councillor Thang Ngo.

"If this is an honest mistake, then it shows she doesn’t even know what her government has announced in her own electorate.

"If it’s deliberate, then she has set out to intentionally mislead her constituents.

"Either way, as her constituent, I will find it hard to trust anything from her office".

The flyer also hails the regrading of Cabramatta back to a category 1 command to "attract the best senior officers" according to Cr Ngo.

This is at odds with her comments in February last year when she claimed, in relation to the downgrading: "there will be no impact on financial or operational issues for the Cabramatta Command as resources remain at the same level".

Ms Meagher can’t have it both ways. She seems to be bending in which ever way the government tells her to, said Cr Ngo.

"The people of Cabramatta need a strong, independent, feisty member, not someone who will blindly take instructions from Macquarie Street" concluded Cr Ngo.