A new group of candidates has come forward to contest six of the nine wards in the Port Phillip Council elections. They provided this statement to TWiSK – it is published in full.
We are standing as “People Empowering Port Phillip” – a group of independents with a genuine community focus and deep long standing connections to Port Phillip.
By bringing independent voices together, we can foster collaboration, respect and a shared commitment to our city’s future without the divisiveness and agenda’s along political lines that can hinder a council’s ability to effectively address and act on the needs of our local community.
It’s time for a council that prioritizes collaboration and mutual respect of our community to bring about real positive change to Port Phillip.
We’re a diverse group with a wide range of expertise in business, council and community who are passionate about our community. We can represent each individual ward with its unique issues but with an overall vision for Port Phillip.
We’re ready to give our city a new way forward.
Our candidates:
Albert Park Ward: Beverley Pinder OAM
CoPP resident for more than 30 years, Beverley was a former City of Melbourne councillor (2012-20) where her work focused on greater community consultation and consideration of place, culture and purpose.
She brings commitment, highly developed skills in collaboration, empathy and smarts to a precinct she loves.
Elwood Ward: Janet de Silva
With a background in media communications and governance, Janet has called the Elwood Ward home for 32 years, during which time she has enjoyed deep connections with local schools, kindergartens, sporting clubs and the community market. With her extensive experience as a journalist providing a broad understanding of issues that concern communities, Janet is committed to building a vibrant liveable and connected neighbourhood.
Lakeside Ward: Levi Silcox
With a background in large-scale business and sustainable enterprise, Levi knows the importance of working together to create positive change. Levi aims to build a positive and supportive community around Lakeside Ward, addressing its unique challenges with fresh ideas and a collaborative spirit. He is committed to transparency, accountability, and advocating for solutions that promote safety, growth, and inclusivity.
Montague Ward: Chris Schwarze
A resident of CoPP for over 40 years. Chris has a background as engineer and editor. Owning and managing a bleeding edge hi tech business in the Montage precinct gave him a deep appreciation of business and creative fields, and the issues confronting the Montague Ward.
Work with educational, government and business committees gave him an understanding of what can be achieved with positive initiatives. A huge influence has been his involvement with Lighthouse, an organisation for homeless street kids.
Port Melbourne Ward: Sabina Sablok
Sabina is a resident of Port Melbourne for over 20 years. Originally from New Delhi she has been very involved in the local community including schools, sports club and the Rotary Club. Having run a very successful business with her husband, Sabina has turned her mind to civic duty helping the community and enabling Port Melbourne Ward to evolve into a safe, vibrant neighbourhood.
St Kilda Ward: Serge Thomann
Serge has been a St Kilda Resident for nearly 30 years, local business owner, CoPP Councillor and Deputy Mayor (2008-2016), member of several local and French not for profit boards. Serge believes that all residents should be engaged, included, and be an integral part of the city. Serge is striving for more genuine citizens participation. He has prepared a detailed plan for this and developed an extensive strategy for St Kilda’s future. His 8 years experience at Council has been invaluable.
Policy themes
Our policies are based around 7 themes:
– a more engaged city
– a safer city
– a cleaner city
– a fairer city
– a greener city
– a more vibrant city
– a better managed city.
As a team of councillors from adjoining wards we can utilise our respective strengths to address difficult and important issues.
