OPERA: IN THE DARK

Two years ago, the Nelson City Council owned and run, Opera in the Dark, incurred a financial loss which cost Nelson ratepayers, well in excess of $100,000.00.
Subsequently, and some time prior to the next opera, that is, the one held just three months ago, council were directly asked, what financial controls were in place to prevent that event from blowing out and again being run at a similar or even greater loss.
Staggeringly Council admitted that it had no such controls in place.
That loss and the resulting questioning over those non existent controls should have rung sufficient alarm bells, warning council that it urgently needed to impose and implement proper budgetary controls and financial management over events staff, especially as, uncontrolled budgetary over runs were becoming a familiar refrain in the councils events calendar.
Therefore when the jungle tom-toms started to claim that this years opera had made another loss, of even far greater proportions than the last, council was asked to confirm and detail the size and nature of those losses.
Stunningly council has simply refused to provide that information. Not only is such a refusal highly improper, it is also arrogant, as these are ratepayer funds that are being grossly mismanaged and ratepayers have a right to that information.
Unfortunately for council when people are kept in the dark, or an information vacuum, speculation becomes rife and replaces informed commentary, and that speculation is saying that, this out of control events situation, exactly parallels the Beckham soccer match debacle and that the loss, on a per capita basis, rivals and may even exceed that Beckham event.
Council needs to understand that such sloppy financial management is totally unacceptable when dealing with public funds and that like the Beckam event it must be investigated and proper accountability must happen and heads must roll.
It is becoming increasingly apparent that council events management is out of control and regards itself as having some sort of priveleged political patronage that does not have to conform to proper financial and budgetary management and other required governance norms.
If council is so incapable of running properly budgeted and controlled events, that it has to deceive by secrecy and ommission then it should get out of those activities. This arrogant secrecy over Opera in the Dark is wholly unacceptable and the public must be kept properly informed.