The boss of the Burnie City Council has apologised after the council made a social media post that appeared to take a dig at one of the city’s controversial councillors.
The post titled “Council’s Woke Workshop Agenda” appeared on the council’s official Facebook page on Tuesday afternoon and outlined a council workshop that evening discussing draft plans and framework development.
“A woke workshop indeed,” the post read.
Members of the local community were quick to point out the ‘childish and unprofessional’ nature of the post and criticised the council for using its social media platform in a ‘bullying manner’.
In response to a comment questioning who signed off on the post, a staff member replied: “That would be Councils Director of Corporate and Commercial services. If you have any concerns at all, we welcome you to come into council to discuss.”
But on Wednesday afternoon, General Manager Simon Overland took to the page to issue an apology.
“Upon reflection, I know that I got this wrong. I used the word ‘Woke’ on the post about the Councillor Workshop yesterday in response to a comment one of the councillors made,” he wrote.
“This post was intended to be ‘tongue in cheek’ but I take on board the criticism that this has drawn and I accept it was the wrong thing to do.”
Overland took the blame for the upset this post has caused and said the council’s culture is to be transparent, respectful and kind to the entire community.
“We know this post didn’t align with that and has missed the mark. We will continue to strive to make a Better Burnie for all.”
The post was eventually taken down.
