Chaiy Donati (March 26) asks that Mandy step down from the weekly ‘Soapbox’ column because she is using it for ‘free political advertising’.
However, he doesn’t give any examples where she actually does this: no quotes or excerpts to illustrate his point. He alludes to her celebration of volunteers who work in various fields for the benefit of the community (and themselves). He claims this is an underhand way of recruiting volunteers for her political campaign. Reading the column I don’t find anything that refers to any form of political volunteering. She talks about Landcare, wildlife care, homeless outreach, the CWA and disaster assistance.
Mandy is a professional journalist who must adhere to regulatory standards. As a political candidate she must also follow rules around campaigning. For examples of ‘free political advertising’ we need look no further than the two major parties who, last year, collaborated to change the laws on political advertising. They have in essence, awarded themselves $140,000,000 of taxpayer funds to use for advertising in any future election campaign. Independents and minor parties have been awarded a small fraction of this. Getting someone else to pay for your advertising is about as ‘free’ as it gets. This move has more serious consequences. It will severely impede the chances of success for minor players and independents in future elections further entrenching our two-party system.
Forget about independent voices in government who can speak for their communities and ‘keep the bastards honest’. You’ll have to be part of some pretty powerful lobby group to get the ear of whichever of the two happen to be in charge in any given term.
For four decades The Echo has printed the stories some people loved, some people hated, and some pretended not to read. If you want us to keep telling the truth, the real truth, not the sugar-coated version. We’ll need your support to keep the presses rolling. 
