Minority parties will play an intriguing role in Saturday’s Local Government Election, especially in South Ward where there are no Liberal candidates.
The Libertarian Party is running in South Ward, with Vanessa Pollak its lead candidate.
Pollak is a political newcomer but shared she is running for local government to ensure her community gets the best representation it can.
“I advocate for a portion of the community that kind of want to be left alone,” Pollak said.
“In the sense of we elect our government officials on the basis that they are going to look after the certain things that they are responsible for and then we don’t want to be dictated to and told what to do.
“We’re just normal community members that just want to get on with our lives and trust the people that we’ve elected will undertake what we’ve put them in the position to do and I’m not quite sure we’ve got enough politicians taking that commitment seriously to the community.
“For whatever reason people enter Council, for whatever reason people enter State or Federal politics, but fundamentally Councils are there to provide a service to the community, they’re not there to change the world. If they are building a political career that’s fine but let’s concentrate on the basics and make sure the communities are looked after.”
Pollak wants her local Council to shift its focus back to ensuring the fundamental needs of the community are met.
“There are things I see occurring within the political arena that really impact community, and I don’t see enough opposition to certain things… but also the simple things when it comes to local government,” Pollak said.
“There is mounting frustration that I see from the community about certain things like holes in the road and things like that, that Council should have their hands all over… and I’m not seeing a lot of activity in that sense, and I feel that a Council should be really putting their energy towards those basic, fundamental things.
“People are required to have their cars road worthy, but I’d like to see my road car worthy.”
Pollak has lived, worked and raised a family in the Penrith local community and said she wanted to be able to impact on how change is being made for the community.
“I became more aware as you get older and your kids start going to public schools, you start paying more attention to what’s going on and the policies that our politicians are coming up with,” Pollak said.
“I also became very interested in things that were affecting me and I certainly felt that the desire to step into an arena where I have some strong opinions or strong feelings towards, I felt that… it’s one thing having an opinion on something and doing something about it and I’m very much a don’t sit in your echo chamber and talk about it.”
Also back in the local political arena is The Greens, who have Shafaq Jaffery leading a ticket in North Ward.
The Local Government Election will be held this Saturday, September 14.
Emily Chate
Emily Chate joined The Western Weekender in 2024, and covers local news - primarily courts and politics. A graduate of the University of Wollongong, Emily has contributed to The Daily Telegraph and worked as a freelance journalist.