Shire didn’t advance Australia there

The Australian Citizenship ceremony hosted by the Bass Coast Shire Council at the Inverloch Hub was very disappointing.

It was obvious that the sound system had not been tested, and it appeared the mayor and some of the other officials had not practiced their presentations; not that it would have mattered as we would not have heard them anyway.

The ‘Welcome to Country’ could not be heard either, and the TV screen was positioned so that it could not be seen by most of the people there.

I, and our friends who came in support and solidarity of this occasion, could not hear the speeches or the Australian Citizenship Pledge read by most of the new Australians.

Also, we were asked to wear formal, or smart casual dress and this was wonderfully expressed by the new citizens, dressing up appropriately, as did their family and friends.

Pity the officials did not get the same instructions – casual attire, and shorts and T-shirts do not make “smart casual”.

The day was meant to about celebrating new citizens, so why did so much time get taken up by (inaudible) speeches about volunteering and not about how great it is to be an Australian?

Tom Lacey, Inverloch.