{"id":157209,"date":"2016-09-08T16:02:20","date_gmt":"2016-09-08T06:02:20","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/southburnett.com.au\/news2\/?p=157209"},"modified":"2020-07-21T15:35:57","modified_gmt":"2020-07-21T05:35:57","slug":"please-focus-on-the-real-issues","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/southburnett.com.au\/news2\/2016\/09\/08\/please-focus-on-the-real-issues\/","title":{"rendered":"Please Focus On The Real Issues"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>September 8, 2016<\/strong><\/p>\n

by Anne Miller<\/strong><\/p>\n

R U Ok? Well, actually no … I am quite disturbed.<\/p>\n

It came to our attention today that a social photograph we published recently has caused grief to a hard-working local public servant.<\/p>\n

We snapped the photo at an event and depicted this person standing near a politician.<\/p>\n

Frankly, this is not at all unusual in the South Burnett where there are councillors, and very often MPs, at many, many events that we cover.<\/p>\n

We have a joke in our office that everyone who is anyone eventually comes to the South Burnett to be photographed.<\/p>\n

We have lost track of the number of politicians we have met since we moved to a daily news format in 2012.<\/p>\n

It is not unusual at all for us to push a group of people together for a “happy snap” at some event. And, sometimes, these groups will include a councillor or MP.<\/p>\n

We believe these photos add flavour to our coverage.<\/p>\n

While critics only whinge about councillors and MPs “socialising”, the more sensible people in our community realise these politicians are talking to constituents, gathering views … in other words, doing their jobs as our elected representatives.<\/p>\n

That is why I was so concerned when I heard today – from different sources – about this incident.<\/p>\n

We are unsure if the public servant involved has been officially reprimanded, or rather it’s simply displeasure from above which has rained down.<\/p>\n

Either way, it is manifestly unfair.<\/strong><\/p>\n

This person has a “real job”, seeing things and doing things in the course of their working day that no Minister or Departmental pen pusher would ever have the skills or guts to do.<\/p>\n

In fact, I believe most MPs would be quickly applying for stress leave if they were put in this role.<\/p>\n

So for some George Street johnny to express displeasure because of a photograph is ridiculous, and indicates that someone somewhere has a very thin skin.<\/p>\n

And by the way, we were not tipped off to this by the public servant involved … so there is no excuse to toss more brickbats in that direction.<\/p>\n

We suggest the people in Brisbane stop getting their knickers in a knot over the trivia of life, and start concentrating on the real issues that affect the South Burnett.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Such as … when are we going to get a new Kingaroy Hospital?<\/p>\n

It is the largest non-specialist birthing unit in Queensland, yet there are only two birthing suites. <\/p>\n

Women have at times been forced to deliver babies in the general wards, and the toilet facilities for maternity patients are a joke.<\/p>\n

Start thinking about these issues, and stop worrying about who stands next to whom in a quick social photograph.<\/p>\n