DEAR News Of The Area,

AS an Australian taxpayer living in Coffs Harbour I find it pretty horrendous to hear our voted-in politicians flippantly talking about using our taxes to influence their local communities at election time.

On the recent Friendlyjordies YouTube channel I heard a secretly recorded dinner party conversation
which included the then Deputy Premier John Barilaro.

My ears pricked up when I heard the name Andrew Fraser used and Coffs Harbour bypass getting tunnels in a potential pork barrelling move.

In the recorded conversation we hear John Barilaro joking about pork barrelling, which is explained by Friendlyjordies as ‘moving funding around for projects to win electorates that are key to winning elections’.

One pollie is heard saying he’s got to go to the ERC (Expenditure Review Committee) and explain how he’s given $100 million in an election with five days to go … and a suggestion that Singleton needs a new fire station, “I think we’ll be funding that this week” we hear someone say.

In the background you hear pollies saying “we’ll pay it if we win, but if we don’t win, we won’t pay.”

The tone is glib and bragging, the content is jaw-droppingly corrupt in my opinion.

Might be worth checking it yourself.

How can our politicians, our public servants, be trusted with our taxes?

Where is the accountability?

Where is the transparency?

And how did Barilaro convince the ICAC he’s not pork barrelling?

From Harrison W,
Coffs Harbour.