Senior council officers should hold their heads in shame.

Last week I received two mailings from Rochdale Council. The first was my Council Tax bill- up yet again. The second was a glossy brochure called “Local Matters”. Whilst I am no fan of junk mail and advertising drivel, what particularly irritates me about “Local Matters” is that my council tax pays for this propaganda.

I use the term propaganda carefully after reading through the slick stories of “exciting times” for Rochdale, welcomed by Roger Ellis, our very highly paid Chief Executive and director of Rochdale Development Agency.

When I want news about my town I read the Rochdale Observer newspaper and go online. Independent news organisations have at least some semblance of editorial control. Unfortunately regarding our council, we live in a world of news management and manipulation driven by Public Relations consultants who waste our money on propaganda.

Mr Ellis, how much is spent each year by Rochdale Council and its partner agencies on media promotion? One figure suggested was over £2 million. I suspect that even this ridiculous amount doesn’t tell the full story.

The real danger with Rochdale Council media manipulation is that precious money and resources are wasted on twisting ‘bad news’ by presenting ‘good news’ rather than investing in the problems that deserve some common sense action.

Instead we get propaganda. Lame stories about the white elephant £350million Kingsway site whilst hundreds of real jobs are lost throughout Rochdale. The £250 million “Retail Revolution” for yet more unwanted shops in the town centre. Another insult to council taxpayers was the utter tripe about community cohesion and the “Pride Partnership” whilst old folk are evicted from their bungalows. I don’t know how much is wasted by the council and RDA but a mere fraction would protect the excellent work of real community groups such as the Syke Base.

Reading “Local Matters” on the same week as getting my Council Tax Bill makes me feel like I’ve just received a glossy postcard from the same gang who mugged my family for almost £2000.

Rochdale people have just about had enough of this mis-management by senior, and often unaccountable, Rochdale Council officers