Casey councillor Kevin Bradford is outraged that Melbourne Football Club officials will be the celebrity guests at an upcoming campaign fundraiser for fellow councillors Janet Halsall, Lorraine Wreford and Wayne Smith.By Kelly Yates
A CASEY councillor is enraged that Melbourne Football Club officials will be the celebrity guests at an election campaign fundraiser for three of his peers.
Mayfield Ward councillor Kevin Bradford this week labelled the dinner, organised by councillors Janet Halsall, Lorraine Wreford and Wayne Smith, as a clear conflict of interest in regards to Melbourne.
Demons manager Chris Connolly and captain Cameron Bruce are the guests at next week’s dinner to raise money for the trio of councillors respective election campaigns.
Guests will be charged $50 for a gourmet three course meal which includes beer, wine and soft drinks at the Berwick Springs Hotel.
Cr Wreford said the three councillors had taken particular care to use their private mobile phones and not the council telecommunications resources when promoting the event. However, in an email seen by the News, Cr Wreford’s council mobile number and council post office box were attached to the invitation.
But, it is the football club drawcard which has angered Cr Bradford.
“I’m disappointed that someone like Mr Connolly would allow himself to be used in a political fundraiser,” he said.
Cr Bradford is also in the spotlight after he was the victim of an apparent smear campaign following the circulation of a flyer in Cranbourne letterboxes.
He said he was notified of the flyer, which called into question his professionalism as a councillor and his conduct as a former police officer.
Cr Bradford said an outraged resident had called to tell him about the flyer.
“I’d never dealt with this resident before and he was disgusted,” he said.
Cr Bradford has received more than 15 calls in relation to the flyer, which states is from a concerned community group, urging residents not to re-elect Cr Bradford in the upcoming November elections.
“These were put out by a cowardly person it the middle of the night,” he said.
“I’m a 100 per-cent sure who’s behind it because they are synonymous with these tactics.”
