‘Election stunt’ mosque row

By Alison Noonan
BALLA BALLA Ward councillor Colin Butler has described the City of Casey’s approval to build a Muslim mosque in Clyde as the “worst planning decision he’s ever seen.”
Cr Butler was furious after Tuesday night’s planning committee meeting in which councillors voted to grant a permit to the Ahmadiyya Muslim Association of Australia to develop a place of assembly on Manks Road.
He described the move as nothing more than an “election vote grabber” and blasted councillors for voting against council officer recommendations to reject the application.
Council officers recommended to refuse the permit because it was contrary to the Green Wedge Zone and Council Planning Scheme, would generate traffic hazards and create an undesirable precedent.
However, Crs Wilson, Abraham, Morland, Oates, Smith and Wreford voted to approve the mosque.
Cr Butler said Tuesday’s meeting was absolutely disgraceful.
“It was a set up job by Labor councillors who have obviously done a deal to score election votes,” he said.
Cr Butler said he was shocked by the “complete backflip” of Crs Wilson and Morland, who knocked back a similar application in Narre Warren North last year.
“Only two of them (Abraham and Smith) actually bothered to go down and inspect the site,” Cr Butler said.
“None of them live any further south than Narre Warren and four didn’t even have the decency to get up and say why they didn’t support the council officer recommendation.
“The two that did speak came up with pathetic arguments. I don’t mind if people consider things on planning merits but there were no planning issues involved whatsoever,” he said.
Cr Butler said residents had been vocal in their objections to the mosque and were “ropeable” at council’s decision.
“They can’t believe it,” he said.
“Nobody is objecting because it’s a mosque but it’s completely out of character for a rural area. It’s just not worship land,” he said.
Ahmadiyya Muslim Association Melbourne Branch President Javed Choudhary said he was delighted with council’s decision and promised the move to the rural area would have minimal impact on surrounding residents.
“We are a small, peaceloving community that will make a positive contribution to the rural character of the area,” Mr Choudhary said.
“We believe we will enhance the area rather than take away and we have no commercial intentions.
“We just want a place for peaceful worship,” he said.
“We want to work together with the community. Our neighbours are like family to us and hopefully we can live like a family.”
Four Oaks Ward Cr Roland Abraham defended the move to approve the mosque, claiming his vote was based solely on planning grounds.
He said any suggestion that the decision was an election sweetener was ridiculous.
“How can it be a Labor election sweetener when Morland and Wreford voted too?
“At the end of the day this community has gone to great lengths to be very flexible. The design does not look or resemble a mosque whatsoever and the permit meets all the relevant planning requirements,” he said.
“What message are we sending to the diversified community by rejecting the application?
“Where else are we going to put them?
“It’s a case of not in my backyard,” he said.