Dear all,
last year (2004), Pat Young made a series of false and defamatory statements against Raymond Hoser.  Hoser wrote and asked Pat Young to retract her false statements and she refused.  Dude to damage caused to Hoser's good name and business interests, he had no choice but to issue legal proceedings against her for defamation.
These proceedings were lodged against Pat Young the individual (in 2005 mid year) and had nothing to do with her employed roles as an overpaid fundraiser with Paraquad, or as a Manningham City Councillor.  The defamations she made were not part of her responsibility in either position.
In spite of these proceedings being against Young as an individual and her own private position of opulant wealth, she managed to get Manningham council to fund an OJ Simpson style legal team to fight her case.  So far this legal team, that has cost ratepayers thousands of dollars has not argued the merits of her case - she has none (see other relevant links on other webpages for an idea of her culpability).
Instead her costly legal team of QC, lawyers and so on has argued technicalities in an attempt to strike out the proceedings.
this failed in the first instance (in September) and the proceedings continue - at huge cost to Manningham ratepayers and at the expense of essentials like child care, the environment and so on.
Pat Young has kept quiet about this matter as it shows her rhetoric about honesty and accountability to be lies.
We also understand that pressure has been applied on local media not to report on these most damning of matters, the real losers being the ratepayers of Manningham.  Hence this matter hasn't been reported in any of the following papers: Manningham Leader, Warrandyte Diary, The Local Paper or Manningham Gazette (?)(Fairfax).
Due to the vast amount of ratepayer's funds that have been spent promoting Pat Young's image over the last 2 years, including through paid adverts in local papers at ratepayer's cost, it is likely she will be re-elected as councillor for Mullum Mullum (Manningham), even though she clearly is not fit and proper for such a position.
Please note that Ron Kitchingman's sole role in the Mullum Mullum elections appears to be as a running mate for Pat Young.  Both have directed preferences to one another and Kitchingman's performance at a recent public meeting was one of unqualified support for Pat Young in all she does.  Kitchingman's position appears to be similar to that of ex-councillor Gerry Dale who said he quit his role of councillor as he regarded it as unethical to be merely rorting the system to give Pat Young greater control over things.  Hence a vote for Kitchingman is effectively a vote for Pat Young and continued malpractices and corruption at Manningham.

Further details: Raymond Hoser - 0412 777 211

Candidate statement - Raymond Hoser - election - Mannungham Council - 2005 (below)

Lived in Manningham 16 years. Married with 2 daughters, a Great Dane and 50 snakes (3 pregnant).  Professionally, I'm a zoologist, wildlife demonstrator, authored several best-selling books (including "Victoria Police Corruption") and own a company with diverse interests and several staff.  A vote for me is a vote for accountability in council. The culture will not be that of dictating to ratepayers, but one of listening to them.  I will abolish ratepayer funded overseas travel, reduce council's promotional advertising, ratepayer funded booze ups and silver service dinners for senior bureaucrats and councillors and other non-essential services and use these savings to properly fund aged-care, public safety, the environment and child-care, all of which remain underfunded.  Rates will be cut if possible. I guarantee to protect the environment and the green wedge, including removing restrictions on removal of feral weeds. We need someone with my track record of integrity and business management to oversee council's operations. Further information at: http://www.raymondhoser.com
In terms of Warrandyte and Park Orchards, I make the following commitments:
- To listen to residents and be their voice to council.  Unlike previous councillors, I will not be a council representative to ratepayers.
- I will make council accountable to ratepayers and stop the petty harassment of law-abiding ratepayers by overzealous staff at council.
- I will abolish the environmentally reckless policies of council.
- I will reduce the excessive waste of council.
- I will abolish the need for a permit to remove weeds from property, which is law that is enforced vigorously against ratepayers at present.
- I will claw-back council funds misappropriated by past councillors for private purposes (including Pat Young's appropriiation of thousands of dollars of ratepayers funds for her own private legal matters) and use this to fund essential things like care for the aged and basic repairs to roads and paths.
- Stop the diversion of Mullum Mullum rates to fund bureaucratic monuments like the Doncaster Hill Crater Zone abortion.
- Stop the unethical methods currently used by council to give business to councillor's own companies and mandate that on the basis of probity, councillors and entities controlled by them be disallowed from applying for such business in the first place and/or they be forced to relinquish their councillor positions.
- All conflicts of interest to be dealt with ethically (in other words eliminate them).
- Stop the illegal cruelty to animals being inflicted illegally at the council pound on a regular basis and bring the conditions there up to a lawful standard.
- Immediately increase funding to the Warrandyte Community House and the associated Child Care to bring it in line with the situation in other wards.  The money council is withholding at present is trivial compared with the vast amounts wasted elsewhere.
- Bring a real Library with books (yes real books!) to Warrandyte.  Warrandyte's children and elderly are being unfairly deprived by the present lack of facilities.
- Prosecute the owner of two dogs at 12 Betton Crescent Warrandyte, councillor, Pat Young, who by her own admission is unable to control her dogs on her property and whose dogs at large have attacked on numerous occasions, including in streets other than her own.
- Stop the relentless extortionate rate rises being imposed against home owners, who do not ask for their money to be spent on holidays for councillors flying first class, a steady stream of glossy leaflets extolling the virtue of council and the like.
- Services to all Manningham rate payers, in particular those of our area, Mullum Mullum, can be greatly improved and on substantially lower rates than are currently extracted from property owners.

Quotes attributable to Raymond Hoser.

"It is safer to deal with Tiger Snakes than with some of the current Manningham Councillors."

"Daily I handle Taipans, Death Adders, Tiger Snakes and the like.  They are all OK.  Some Manningham councillor's are far less trustworthy."

"Current Manningham councillors regard themselves as staff of the council bureaucracy.  I would regard myself as being one of the ratepayers and regard the council as our paid servants - not the other way around."

"In my business as Australia's leading reptile displayer and educator, I deal with virtually all other Melbourne councils and none are remotely as dysfunctional as Manningham".

"Several things brought me to stand for election as a councillor.  However when I heard that the council cried "poor" over a $5,000 shortfall for the childcare centre at Warrandyte, via a story in the Warrandyte Diary, I knew things were going too far.  Especially when just a fortnight earlier a Maningham councillor had somehow managed to get the council to spend tens of thousands on an OJ Simpson style legal team for a private legal battle that had nothing whatsoever to do with council or council business or her role as councillor. … surely the kids of Warrandyte are more important that private legal battles of a wealthy councillor. … Put another way, being a councillor shouldn't be about lining one's own pockets."

"When you lodge an FoI application with Manningham council, you soon learn that their claims of accountability and transparency are all lies."