He was the highest-polling candidate for the Te Puke Community Board, but Western Bay of Plenty Councillor Mike Lally has been left completely out of the loop.

Being elected a councillor means he cannot automatically join the board – he must be appointed by the Western Bay of Plenty Mayor. Yet Mayor Garry Webber has declined to do so.

'I am the only councillor who lives within the Te Puke Community Board area,” says Mike.

'The chairman of the board doesn't, and nor do the councillors appointed to the board, [Grant] Dally and [John] Scrimgeour.”

Mike says he has no problem with his fellow councillors, but questions why they were appointed over him, particularly John Scrimgeour, who lives rurally away from Te Puke?

'Why would you appoint a councillor who lives way out in the country, to a board concerned with urban matters?” asks Mike.

For the record, Mike wasn't appointed to any of the boards – although his colleague John also sits on the Maketu board.

'To appoint a councillor who is also chair of a committee to both the Maketu Community Board and the Te Puke Community Board – that tells you something is seriously wrong.”

Two councillors each are appointed to the five community boards in the WBOP, organised geographically. Generally, the appointed councillors represent the ward in which the community board's area falls.

But Mike has been left out of the Te Puke Community Board altogether, while John Scrimgeour sits on two boards, chairs the Long Term Plan and Annual Plan Committee, and is a SmartGrowth appointee, along with the Mayor and Deputy Mayor Mike Williams.

Mike Lally feels he has a lot of support in Te Puke. He ran for the mayoralty against Garry, and although he fell short of winning, he still polled high in his own ward.

'They [Te Puke voters] obviously have faith in me to look after their interests, or else I wouldn't have topped the poll,” says Mike.

Fellow councillor Margaret Murray-Benge agrees it is shabby treatment.

'I was extremely supportive of Garry Webber. I thought he had the potential to be a very good mayor,” says Margaret.

'However, based on the way he [Garry] has organised his committees, I find it despicable. I'm quite angry with him.”

Maragaret has years of experience serving in local government, but never made it past deputy chair in Garry's committee arrangements. As for Mike, she finds it egregious he's been left out of both the community boards and committee chair positions.

'Mike polled well. He got more votes than Garry in the mayoral campaign for Te Puke. Yet he's not included in anything.”

Mike hasn't been able to get a straight answer out of the mayor about the situation. Cynically, he thinks there might be some vindictiveness at play.

'What the mayor is trying to do is disenfranchise me from the voters,” says Mike.

'But that's never going to happen.”

Garry emphasises, however, that this was a council decision, although he plays down the fact they were his personal recommendations.

'There was a proposal for council committee structures and representation. It was a council decision, which was voted 10-two in favour.”

He was unwilling to discuss the motivation behind his recommendations for the Te Puke Community Board.

'I'm not getting into any discussion on individuals. There was a recommendation made, council agreed to it, end of story.”