By Ethan Benedicto
As the council election ramps up, candidates from Waratah Ward in the northern-most tip in the City of Casey are voicing their concerns over critical issues from crime rates to the greater need for council accountability.
Covering the suburbs of Doveton, Eummemering, Hallam and Hampton Park, the ward currently has five standing candidates, all with one integral focus in mind – tackling crime and community safety.
Nasser Yawari, advocate and mentor for Jesuit Social Services has highlighted “increasing incidents of theft, burglary, and youth crime” as his main focus when it came to ward issues; with aims of tackling contributing factors such as unemployment, lack of awareness to crime consequences and insufficient CCTV coverage.
Likewise, Stefan Koomen, a senior electorate officer, believes that improving communication with local police and developing youth programs can help to “prevent anti-social behaviour” where “better-maintained public spaces” could be key to safety.
Finance broker Burak Dilbaz echoed these concerns, citing a 13 per cent year-over-year increase in Casey from 2023, where he added that proactive measures must be taken to address the increasing trend.
At the same time, Jamel Kaur Singh, a former medic in the Defence Force with over 20 years of experience in corporate culture said that aspects of inclusion, integrity and opportunity all apply to “crime (drugs), services to potholes and more”.
“Hallam residents have complained about stresses of unsolicited parking, Doveton’s residents and business owners are worried about the increased crime [and] Hampton Park needs more help with teaching parents responsible parenting and consequences for youth crime,” she said.
The second topic of importance for these candidates is accountability and transparency, with Yawari drawing attention to what he sees as the council’s current lack of accountability and “dissatisfaction with its services”.
“The council has become more politicised, losing focus on the real needs of its residents,” he said.
Dilbaz also emphasised the importance of trust and transparency, considering the previous council’s situation and the “legacy [of] issues that will remain as a result of the controversy”.
Ezatullah Alam, though not having submitted a response of the questionnaire to Star News, has stated in his official VEC response the importance of addressing past governance and “integrity issues within our local government”.
Singh also stated the importance of integrity when it comes to leadership in the council, where an independent, transparent and a governing body free from party politics is a must.
The next most important topic was budget allocation and infrastructure development, where room for development is needed on the former, with Yawari saying that the current council budget is not fairly distributed.
Public spaces and infrastructure were a focus for Koomen, where he said that the ward’s suburbs have been “overlooked”, highlighting the needs of shopping precincts such as Hampton Park Central and other community facilities.
Dilbaz quoted overdevelopment, where moving forward, the council should be looking at efficient planning, with adequate resources to assess applications and to encourage valuable investment in the area.
Being champions of inclusion and community engagement is needed for the ward, according to Singh who said that each suburb in the ward has varying needs, where addressing them should be done through meaningful engagement.
With his experiences at Jesuit Social Services, Yawari is in the same boat, speaking on the need for a council that genuinely understands and advocates for local families.
Looking ahead and with Waratah Ward heads into election month, it is clear that crime, accountability, fair budget allocation, infrastructure maintenance, and community engagement are at the forefront of the candidates’ minds.
