AS a committee member of the Goulburn AP&H Society, I find Goulburn Mulwaree Council’s arrogant attitude which in reality led to the forced cancellation of the Goulburn Show quite disturbing.
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Obviously in a desperate effort to protect itself from community backlash, within an hour of the meeting held last Monday between Council and the Goulburn Show Society, Council broke all speed records in making a media release casting aspersions on the Show Society for its decision to cancel the 2016 Show.
As well as there being factual errors in the media release, I also comment: It is not Council’s call to have made such an announcement - that was the prerogative of the Goulburn Show Society.
Council said in its media release that it and Harness had worked ‘tirelessly’ with the Show Society to resolve the double booking.
This was not the case - at every meeting we came away with the same result.
Despite us continually telling Council in person and in writing that the risks of injury to our show visitors were not acceptable, Council was adamant that both events had to go ahead together, and that the Show Society needed to come up with some compromises to accommodate the harness event.
I’m afraid when it comes to any potential harm to any of our Show attendees, there is no compromise the Show Society can or will make. It would have been a simple matter for Council to have negotiated with Harness Racing NSW for the harness event to have been moved to another date.
Harness events get changed all the time, whether it be due to bad weather or changed circumstances.
Ignoring 135 years of tradition, Council, without regard to the social, financial, tourism and other benefits that the annual two-day Goulburn Show brings to Goulburn and its communities, has effectively favoured a four hour race event which would have none of these benefits to our community.
Council has known all along that the Goulburn Show Society could not, under any circumstances, accept any possibility of injury to any one of our Show visitors, yet it still insisted that the joint event proceed.
Council stated that if we changed the timing of some Show events, the two events could go ahead together. Leaving aside the risk issues, we have repeatedly explained to Council that given the size of the Show’s equestrian events, that is not possible.
It is noted that in its media release, Council states that the harness event would start at 2.30pm.
Initially, harnesswanted a 1pm start - then it went to 2pm -and now for the first time we learn it will be 2.30pm.
Does anyone know what is proposed for the harness event? Irrespective of the timing discrepancies, given the documented risks, a joint event is not acceptable to us.
We have informed Council in the past, and repeat here, that the proposed harness event, as it would have involved prize monies and on-course betting, would have been run outside the Harness Racing NSW requirements for show racing.
Interestingly, while it would not support us for the traditional stand-alone 2016 Goulburn Show, with unbelievable arrogance Council has now announced that as the Goulburn Show is too important to the community for it not to be held, it will conduct its own Goulburn Show next year.
The Goulburn AP&H Society has existed since 1880, and the name Goulburn Show is ours, and can only be used by us. It does not belong to Council or anyone else.
Nestor Ellinopoullos, Goulburn.
