1800 Hrs GMT
London
Saturday
21 January 2012.
STATEMENT and commentary on councillor fraud in Tower Hamlets. the BHANGEELAAR! Campaign against an elected executive mayor in Tower Hamlets and the campaign for an elected council made up of democratically conscious and socially responsible and active councillors
BHANGEELAAR!
The Campaign against an executive elected mayor in Tower Hamlets
[Calling for a NO to elected mayor since 06 February 2010]
“No to an elected executive mayor” CAMPAIGN comments on the latest convicted fraudster Councillor
The following comment was prompted by a piece published on the former "East London Advertiser" and was posted within a very short time on the same web site [three typing errors have been corrected in the version below]:
Our Movement has called for the sacking and or resignation and or the lawfully implemented removal for life from office of ALL wrongdoing occupants or wannabe occupants of public office in the area covered by the London Borough of Tower Hamlets.
Please do bear in mind the fact that ALL councillors and others "elected" to publicly paid for positions in Tower Hamlets have been silent on all those issues. The fact that they are just beginning to open their mouths is not good enough. To be a fraudster is not any worse than being a colluder and tolerator of fraudster.
Shelina AkhtarAkterAktar is not the first Tower Hamlets Councillor who has been caught out over Council tax benefits abuse and in the present case, theft.
There are OTHER frauds and abuse. The worst fraud is of course the one that most people appear to leave out of the list. That fraud is the ritualistic fraud that is given a "legitimate image and label". It is called council election [and or by-election]. What the candidates say at the door when canvassing for votes they totally forget for years.
What the councillors and the voters do about that fraud is the question that we are campaigning on this week and for the next years.
Councillors who are not yet convicted as criminals but are tolerating crimes of mass negligence by the local Council must be held to account.
Do they have the honesty and the conscience to face the audit?
BHANGEELAAR! The Campaign against an executive elected mayor in Tower Hamlets [Calling for a NO to elected mayor since 06 February
below is the full text of Peter Golds letter to the self-appointed but totally strange “Monitoring Officer” Isabella Freeman. Peter Golds has not got the focus right in his letter.
However, his is the only text that we have been able to get hold of.
Mr Golds must explain why he failed to stay firm and continue to oppose the executive elected mayor system. Had he done so, we would have a council now that at least in theory could be subject to a semblance of a democratic process that would have more people on the council having a say IF THEY POSSESSED the intellectual, the m oral, the ethical and the democratic abilities, the collective will and the necessary basic social sense of responsibility.
We shall continue on this theme in the coming weeks, months... [To be continued]
London Borough of Tower Hamlets
Mulberry Place
Clove Crescent
London
E14 2BG
0207 364 4830 (office)
Ms Isabella Freeman
Monitoring Officer
London Borough of Tower Hamlets
Mulberry Place
Clove Crescent
London
E14 2BG
16th January 2012
Dear Ms Freeman
Re: Shelina Akhtar (Aktar)
I am writing with regard to the motion to council submitted by myself and Cllr Archer on behalf of our group. Mr Williams has spoken to me and I have agreed an amendment, merely calling for this corrupt and disgraced individual to resign her membership of this council as I was told that as a council “we cannot suspend her”.
Shelina Akhtar was elected Labour councillor for the Spitalfields and Banglatown ward in May 2010 giving her address as 37 Toynbee Street, E1. During April 2010, after her selection, the number of electors at 37 Toynbee Street increased and subsequently all voted in the election.
Following her election she demanded that her name be changed on council records to Shelina Aktar and quickly left the Labour Party, joining the Independent group supporting the candidature of Cllr Lutfur Rahman as Executive Mayor.
In July 2010 Shelina Akhtar of 112 Blackwall Way, E14 was convicted on three counts of benefit fraud. Of course, had anybody merely researched the name Shelina Akhtar she might have escaped public scrutiny as she had insisted all entries on her regarding council information be changed to Aktar. Luckily for the public this ruse failed.
In April 2011 she was charged on three counts of failing to notify a change of circumstances, which would have affected her entitlement to benefit.
Shelina Akhtar of Blackwall Way is the same Shelina Aktar of 37 Toynbee Street. She currently appears to occupy two properties. In one case receiving a councillor’s allowance and in the other being convicted for fraud, whilst varying the name to, hopefully, prevent discovery.
In January 2012 she pleaded guilty to further charges of benefit fraud and is awaiting sentence.
She has without a shadow of doubt, brought this authority into disrepute.
I am therefore surprised that our existing Standards process has made no recommendation about her position. They currently have the power to suspend her membership of this council, indeed a councillor has recently been suspended for reasons which seem, somewhat arcane. I know for fact that there are at least five current investigations being undertaken by Standards which are vexatious and driven by malice on the part of councillors from the Independent members of whom Shelina Akhtar (Aktar) has been an active member as late as December 2011, attending Mayoral engagements and “group” meetings on a monthly basis.
The fact that she has been found guilty on two occasions (the first within two months of being elected) should have ensured that the Standards Committee met and considered her situation.
There are concerns amongst councillors and residents that her position will be supported to provide a prop for the Mayor in the budget process. How will this show Tower Hamlets if the Mayoral budget is approved on the vote of a convicted benefit fraudster?
She is convicted. This information is public; surely the Standards Committee could meet and take action before January 25th. After all they cannot change the verdict as she admitted a plea of guilty. They have also had eighteen months from the first conviction to consider her bringing the council into disrepute.
One reason the Standards regime has been fallen into disrepute nationally are the number of simply vexatious complaints which have seen councillors suspended for misplaced remarks or foolish “tweets”. Here we have a law breaker, who now appears to be permitted to take part in the budget process of an elective body spending over £1billion of public money.
In any other body, she would have been suspended. Why not here?
Yours sincerely
(Cllr) Peter Golds
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