A CONFIDENTIAL investigation into Donnybrook-Balingup Shire councillor Mike King resulted in Council resolving a complaint against him was baseless.
The complaint report, which was recently made public, made allegations that Cr King had authored a complaint from the Balingup Progress Association that criticised the Shire.
To have authored such a complaint would have breached the Shire code of conduct requiring Councillors not to publicly criticise Councillors or employees.
Council acknowledged on June 25 that there was no evidence or conclusions or recommendations that Cr King was involved in the preparation of the BPA complaint letter.
“Council conducted an internal confidential report on the Issues Arising from the Balingup Progress Association complaint, and as there were no conclusions or recommendations in the report, resolved to take no action,” Council CEO John Attwood said.
Cr King moved at the July Ordinary Council meeting to have Council acknowledge there was no evidence to support any allegations, inferences, innuendo or hints from the report; that Cr King had maintained the requirements of a Shire Councillor and acted within the code of conduct; and that Council instruct the Shire Administration to issue letters of apology to members of the public who had been adversely affected by the report.
The motion was lost five votes to three with minimal discussion.