EDITORIAL: If there is one thing that unites Jimboomba Times readers it is our roads. This is much more than simple geography, it is a spirit of resistance that doesn’t take things lying down.
Our critical transport corridor – the notorious Mount Lindesay Highway – is under intense scrutiny from multiple stakeholders, from the RACQ to local interest groups, lobbyists and governments.
With six fatalities on the roads across our region in 2017, and 40 crashes on the Mount Lindesay Highway alone, things are beyond serious.
You can tell by the level of commitment to fundamental democratic principles. There are three of them, and they all involve the letter P.
The first is the right to petition. Call them whatever you like: survey, group letter, plebiscite – they’re all a form of public vote, and they play a critical role in getting political representatives to listen.
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Complaints spoken at politicians will see their heads start to nod, but hand them a petition and their office will advise them to start taking action.
The second is the right to public meetings. Whenever people gather and put our heads together, you’ll usually find a politician or two in tow, since even a small crowd creates an energy that can be very powerful.
The working group established to sort out the issue of the service road off the Mount Lindesay Highway at North Maclean started recently with an emotive and decisive meeting of businesses ahead of what is tipped to be an even bigger gathering on August 27.
The third foundation of democracy is protest, with another important P, which stands for peaceful.
The right to take to the streets in an orderly fashion is something being exercised quite a lot across the world right now.
Jimboomba has tried the first two Ps many times. How long will it be before we see protests?
