By Parker McKenzie
With the Monbulk electorate’s changing borders ahead of the 2022 state election, the Star Mail spoke to the people in areas previously outside the electorate about the issues they believe should be addressed by their new state representative.
The Monbulk electorate was enlarged to also include Gembrook, Cockatoo, Emerald and parts of Ferntree Gully due to it being smaller than the average-sized electorate in the state.
Connecting Cockatoo Communities Chairperson Tate McFarlane said during a recent event where residents met and asked questions to the Liberal Party’s Gareth Ward and Labor’s Daniela De Martino, the local community raised several issues to the Monbulk candidates.
“We talked about power and telecommunication resilience in times of crisis, we had that storm event last year and we were in a situation where being able to access and communicate with the outside world became limited,” he said.
“The power system itself was out for three or four days, which for a community that is considered a metropolitan area is pretty substantive.”
Other issues raised during the event included the physical and mental health services in the hills, roads and potholes, and support for young people in the area.
Emerald resident Maria Millers said there have been long-term transport issues in the state.
Mums of the Hills, a community group dedicated to supporting mothers throughout the Dandenong Ranges, organised a survey about the needs of their members.
The key issues raised were connectivity issues and a lack of childcare options creating barriers to employment in the hills, access to NDIS or Health information and disaster preparedness.
Mums of the Hills founder Belinda Young said the group knows how difficult it can be for mothers in the Dandenong Ranges to find consistent work.
“I heard of single mums forced to not purchase firewood and survive on little to no food so they could pay for phone data to continue to work from home,” she said.
“A radical rethink on how we support locals impacted by a vulnerable telecommunications infrastructure must occur.”
Emerald resident Maria Millers said there was a complete lack of transport options for both young people and the elderly throughout the township, which she would like to discuss with the candidates.
“It’s a quality of life issue, elderly people with appointments are basically marooned,” she said.
“The young cohort have basically been left to their own devices to get to parties and or venues because there are no taxis.”
The Victorian state election will be held on Saturday 26 November.
