Boroondara Council votes to censure councillor Victor Franco over ‘scandalous’ radio interview

An eastern suburbs councillor went on radio to unload on his colleagues about parking — but his “outrageous” and “scandalous” comments have now earned him an unprecedented punishment.

A council carpark in Camberwell has been a contentious issue. Picture Norm Oorloff

A councillor from the leafy eastern suburbs has been disciplined by his colleagues for “scandalously” accusing them of rorting a parking permits policy in a radio interview.

In an unprecedented move for City of Boroondara, councillors voted overwhelmingly to censure Victor Franco for using his position to allegedly insult councillors and bring discredit to the council.

A motion put this week by councillor Jane Addis said that in a recent 3AW interview, Mr Franco had implied that councillors had been hypocritical when they voted against turning a staff carpark into green space.

It said that Mr Franco had also misrepresented a policy which allows councillors to park there beyond a two-hour limit if engaged in council business.

Boroondara councillor Victor Franco was censured over the comments he made on radio.

“So we, you know, as council, we create and establish the parking restrictions, we enforce them, but when it comes to applying them to ourselves it’s quite a different story isn’t it?” Mr Franco reportedly said in the interview.

Ms Addis told the meeting that Mr Franco had contravened the council’s media policy.

“While there is a place for robust debate, the place for this to occur is within the council chamber,” she said.

“(This motion) is about calling out bad behaviour and correcting the public record.”

The council carpark in Camberwell has been a contentious issue. Picture Norm Oorloff

Boroondara councillor Jim Parke.

Former mayor Jim Parke accused Mr Franco of making an “appalling slur” against councillors in a “cheap headline-grabbing” interview.

“Quite frankly, to suggest that councillors are somehow rorting the system through parking permits is outrageous, it’s untrue and outrageous, scandalous.”

Mr Franco denied breaching the media policy, and said his comments hadn’t been derogatory.

“There is nothing improper with an elected councillor giving media interviews about motions that are debated at council meetings,” he said.

“This is just ordinary democracy and free speech.”

Mr Franco said that councillors were unhappy that he had raised contentious issues like the carpark, and his opposition to the prayer recited at the start of council meetings.

Councillor Susan Biggar said the censure motion was not the right way to deal with the issue, and the community expected councillors to work together.

“This is not the way to address our frustrations and dissatisfactions with each other over the next three years,” she said.

3AW broadcaster Tom Elliott, who conducted the interview, said the censure motion was “not democracy at its finest”.

The censure motion was passed 9-1, with Mr Franco abstaining.

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