Convicted criminal, Cllr Mumshad Ahmed, says he wants to draw a line under the happenings of the last few weeks. How dare he? Because he didn’t tell the voters that he was up on a charge he knew would stick, they won’t be able to draw a line under it for years.
He says in the Shuttle at he admitted his guilt from the outset. If so, how come the Tories didn’t know they had a criminal standing for them on June 4th? Surely, the party placed an obligation on him to inform them when he was banned from driving last December or when he was charged with driving while banned on two further occasions? Our local LibDem party has had to instigate such rules after past problems with unelected members but Ahmed was already an elected representative and should surely have made a commitment not to bring the party or council into disrepute?
If Cllr Ahmed had really admitted his guilt from the outset, did the Tories of Wyre Forest not question why he was driving to their HQ, Margaret Thatcher House, as one of the convictions states?
Cllr Ahmed’s case is not as Wyre Forest District Council leader, John Campion understates, a “lapse of judgement.” What he did was wilful criminality. As for Cllr Campion saying he was disappointed but supported Councillor Ahmed! Would he have said that if the drunk driver had run down a child or caused a serious accident while banned and uninsured? I believe in people being allowed to atone for their crimes but Cllr Ahmed actually stood for election while awaiting a trial he knew he would lose.
David Cameron talks of cleaning up the Conservative party. He has sacked senior MPs for non-criminal offences. Wyre Forest’s Tory council cabinet are supporting a convicted criminal, humiliating their membership and demonstrating contempt for the law and for their constituents.
I call on Dr Richard Taylor MP, Nigel Knowles (Labour PPC), Lib Dem Cllr Helen Dyke, Cllr Fran Oborski of the Liberal Party, Health Concern Cllr Howard Martin, Kate Spohrer of the Green Party, Mike Wrench of Ukip and Mark Garnier, Conservative candidate to join me in writing to David Cameron to request Mumshad Ahmed’s expulsion from the Conservative Party and for him and John Campion to vacate their posts forthwith.
Neville Farmer
Parliamentary Spokesman
Wyre Forest Liberal Democrats
June 25, 2009 at 12:17 pm
Would I be correct in assuming, therefore, that in the interests of moral consistency, you believe that the Liberal Democrats should return the £2.4m donation received from a convicted fraudster so that it can be returned to the victims of Michael Brown’s crime?
Whilst it is true that Councillor Ahmed’s actions were incredibly stupid and could have had consequences for innocent road users, that fortunately did not happen. The same cannot be said for the actions of Michael Brown, whose fraud has real victims. To quote a wise scribe ‘What he did was wilful criminality’.
Why does the Liberal Democrat’s defence that they knew nothing at the time they received the donation not apply in this case? Would people have voted for the Liberal Democrats knowing that they were funding their election campaign with the proceeds of crime? Should all Liberal Democrat MPs and councillors who were elected using Michael Brown’s donation not resign? If they don’t, ‘they won’t be able to draw a line under it for years’.
June 25, 2009 at 12:31 pm
I agree with you, Mr Carruthers and if that money is the product of fraud as you assert, I would wish to return it.
But are you attempting to excuse Cllr Ahmed by accusing the Liberal Democrat party of being criminals? Cllr Ahmed is a convicted one and knew it when he stood before the electorate but said nothing to either his constituents or his party, who worked long and hard to get him elected.
Neville Farmer