December 15, 2015
A candidate for Division 4 at the upcoming South Burnett Regional Council elections has decided to withdraw his nomination.
In a statement released on his Facebook page on Tuesday night, Jason Ford said that after “soul searching” he had decided it was not the right time to run for Council:
“Three months ago I announced my intention to run as a candidate for Division 4 at the 2016 South Burnett Regional Council Elections,” Mr Ford said.
“I’ve now made the difficult decision to not proceed with a nomination for Council.
“Initially, I was determined to nominate for the Division and was excited about the election as I believe I would have a good chance of success. However, after some additional soul searching in recent days I’ve decided that now is not the right time.
“Currently, I’m working for a wonderful organisation and am doing the kind of job that I’ve spent decades tirelessly training for and developing.
“I simply need more time to see where my career in education can take me, and if I was lucky enough to be elected in March, I’m not entirely certain I’d be emotionally ready to leave my amazing work colleagues.
“Over the years I’ve been fortunate to work on many initiatives that benefit the local community and believe I can achieve even more in the coming years without the constraints often associated with service in local government.
“I wish all the current Councillors and new candidates the best of luck at the upcoming election, as I respect anyone who chooses go out on a limb and be judged by their community.
“It’s my belief that the majority of candidates have genuinely noble intentions as they seek to serve the community.
“We don’t always agree with decisions made in the Council Chamber, however that’s the nature of democracy and no reason to behave in a nasty and bitter way.
“Speak up if you disagree with Council, put forward an alternative idea but please show some decency and respect towards people who were democratically elected to represent us.
“I suspect there will be many more candidates announced by the close of nominations. As a ratepayer, I’d prefer at least three candidates running for each Division to provide the community with a diversity of choice.
“Personally, I’ve received nothing other than positive feedback and support since announcing my candidacy and I’ve received numerous offers from campaign volunteers.
“I sincerely hope I’m not disappointing anyone, but I have no regrets and believe my decision is in the best interests of my family.
“However, I won’t rule out running at a future local government election.
“My sincere thanks for all who have supported me, it is greatly appreciated.”
