The Dinosaurs try the "your stealing our assets argument" 
                         (but just demonstrate their credentials as political spoilers.)

I have been asked why there has been no comment by me on the "NEW WIA". That is because I knew that the dinosaurs would not give up without a fight to preserve their positions.

The first missive has appeared from Michael Corbin in NSW. Michael just does not understand that the WIA is about amateur Radio and its representation and development. The WIA is neither a property company nor a financial investment vehicle. He, and those like him who have tied our organisation into administrative and legal knots seem to have no interest in Amateur Radio. 

At no point in his missive does he mention anything other than constitutions, legal matters and what I call administration. He seems especially miffed that he was not involved in selecting the new board of directors ! 

Quote from Michael's speech,
"This is an extremely difficult time for the WIA NSW Council. Difficult because the Councillors, working as a team, need to consider corporate legal matters, financial impacts of changes on the company, and a constitutional dilemma. Uppermost in the thought of council must at all times be the rights of members of the division......"

There is no concern about the future of Amateur Radio and what is the best way to organize representation for the future of Amateur Radio in Australia.

If Michael were really concerned about the ownership he would have done what I advised many years ago and put the assets into a trust. He is simply using this as an emotive bid to try to construct a scare campaign.

The WIA and its current divisions should only own assets where they produce benefit for amateurs. As I have argued in other papers, there is no need for holding large assets. I am sure people like Michael will still be fighting to preserve "their" assets long after Amateur Radio has died through a lack of adequate representation. 

In any organisation Managers and Directors must hold under review all the assets of the company and assess in what way they contribute to the objectives of the company. 

Do these assets that are held so dear by the dinosaurs contribute their value to Amateur Radio. Michael claims $3M worth of assets in NSW. That could give a return very easily of  $150,000 per annum (or greater if managed properly). Does Amateur Radio currently get a benefit worth this amount of money each and every year? The total budget of the Federal WIA is currently around $250,000. 

The dinosaurs like to pretend that this money is in some way the property of the members, and this is sort of true. However, it is not true that the members can individually get hold of their share and spend it privately. The money can only be used in an organization that devotes itself to the furtherance of Amateur Radio. It cannot be distributed to the members/shareholders as in a normal commercial company.

The only way individuals can share in the assets of the division is to be employed or paid an honoraria by the division.

Michael sets a schoolboy political trap in saying that his opponents will deny that they are interested in the assets but of course, wink wink, nod nod, we all know that can't be true when $3M is involved. Well Michael that is a crock of whatever and reveals more about your morality than that of those pushing for a WIA that works. You may be motivated to make a grab for $3M but I am not!

Anyone reading my papers will see that I have shown no interest in the real estate assets. My advice has been to shunt the real estate into the control of separate trusts where people who enjoy that sort of thing can play at property management while the WIA gets on with the really important stuff of representing Amateur Radio. 

Michael calls this a takeover by stealth. Rubbish! It has been a very public process!

Michael had his chance to change the WIA for the better. When I was a director I gave him and other councillors information that demonstrated the need for change. They chose to disregard that advice. Over a period of years I have continued to show the problems, Michael has continued to disregard that advice. Given the content of this latest speech I can now see that perhaps he simply does not understand the management needs of an organization like the WIA. That is a pity, but it is not a good reason to try and stand in the way of those that can see a better way to do things.

The fact is that the members of the WIA in Victoria and NSW will not be worse off in any way under the new organization. They will be much better of. They will gain a representative body that spends it's time on matters affecting the future of Amateur Radio rather than worrying about the trivial and divisional politics. 

Martin Luther VK7GN
9th June 2004

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