Boola Maara Aboriginal Consultative Committee
📢 Division, Duplication, or Political Agenda?
Mayor Peter Feasey often boasts that Kwinana is the only council in Western Australia with a body like the Boola Maara Aboriginal Consultative Committee (BMCC).
But for rate-paying families facing rising costs, this raises an obvious question: If no other council in WA needs this extra layer of bureaucracy, why are Kwinana ratepayers funding it?
Many Kwinana residents are completely unaware this committee even exists—let alone that their hard-earned rate dollars are being continuously channelled into funding its monthly consultations, administrative staff, and operational fees.
What is the Boola Maara Consultative Committee?
Established by the City of Kwinana to provide “strategic advice” on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander matters, the BMCC is marketed as a step toward reconciliation. In practice, however, it represents an extra, costly administrative body operating alongside the regular Council—built and maintained without any broad community consultation or public vote.
Why Does Kwinana Need Two Decision-Making Bodies?
With rates steadily climbing, Kwinana ratepayers deserve to know why two separate groups are being paid to discuss the exact same issues.
The BMCC meets monthly to deliberate on matters that are frequently re-hashed at full Council meetings the very next week.
This creates glaring inefficiencies, unnecessary double-ups, and an outright duplication of council workload—all funded by your rate dollars without most residents even knowing it exists.
The Real Cost of Bureaucratic Duplication
Running a formal monthly committee isn’t free. Ratepayers foot the bill for:
- Cultural & Sitting Fees: Ongoing allowances paid for monthly meeting attendance.
- Administrative Overhead & Staffing: Dedicated council officers required to organize agendas, draft minutes, and support committee operations.
- Facility & Operational Costs: Ongoing hall hire, logistics, and catering for extra meetings.
- Redundant Staff Time: Countless hours spent preparing reports for the BMCC, only to re-submit and re-debate them at Council.
This monthly cycle drains tens of thousands of ratepayer dollars every year—money that should be going toward essential local infrastructure, road repairs, and core community services.
A Smarter, Cost-Effective Alternative
We can respect local Indigenous culture and ensure genuine representation without maintaining a parallel bureaucracy:
- Leadership at the Council Table: With an Indigenous Deputy Mayor already sitting on Council, the chamber has strong, elected leadership capable of guiding cultural matters during standard proceedings.
- Direct Representation: Inviting a designated cultural representative to attend regular Council meetings ensures direct, integrated advocacy for Kwinana’s Aboriginal community.
- Targeted Elder Consultation: Replacing monthly committee meetings with periodic, bi-annual consultations with local Elders preserves meaningful dialogue while eliminating administrative bloat.
Streamlining this process would save Kwinana taxpayers tens of thousands of dollars annually in staff salaries, hall hire, and administrative fees—proving we can honor local heritage while demanding real financial discipline.