Playford councillors in trouble over false teeth and Facebook code of conduct complaints
JUST leave the dentures in. False teeth and an insulting Facebook post have landed two Adelaide councillors in hot water for breaching conduct rules.
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FALSE teeth and an insulting Facebook post have landed two Playford councillors in hot water for breaching conduct rules.
Councillors Denis Davey and Michael Joy were found to have breached the Local Government Act’s code of conduct following an independent panel’s investigations, which were tabled at last month’s Playford Council meeting.
The report stated that during an argument at the Elizabeth Rise Community Centre in May last year, Cr Davey removed his false teeth in front of a female volunteer, and then placed his hand on the woman’s forehead.
Cr Davey told the investigation he removed his false teeth to “lighten up” the mood of a group of three woman, following an incident where food was thrown during a parenting program at the centre.
The following day at a volunteer dinner at the Playford Civic Centre, Cr Davey placed one hand on the same woman’s head and the other on her shoulder, the report said.
He told the panel he was steadying himself after losing his balance.
He added he had apologised to the woman involved, that he was a “good-hearted” person and understood why the three women were uncomfortable with his behaviour.
The panel found Cr Davey failed to act “in a way that generates community trust and confidence”, as required by the code of conduct.
He was ordered to comply with measures designed to improve and monitor his behaviour, which would be decided by Playford chief executive Mal Hemmerling, Mayor Glenn Docherty and an independent professional consultant.
In a separate incident, Cr Joy was ordered to post an apology on a Facebook page, after writing comments about residents wasting his time at a public consultation meeting in May last year.
The panel found Cr Joy was “dismissive and unprofessional” in discussing rates on the Facebook page “Everything Angle Vale”, when he said anyone who held a certain point of view in regards to possible rate rises was “an idiot”.
The thread had since been deleted but the panel’s report said Cr Joy had not denied posting the comments.
In an email to the panel, Cr Joy said the context of the comment had been portrayed incorrectly, that he did not mean to insult users of the group and had made the comments without malice.
Councillors voted to accept the panel’s breach of code of conduct findings and recommendations at the meeting.
Councillors Joy and Davey did not respond to calls for comment from the Northern Weekly.