OPEN LETTER TO CLLR ALLAN POOLE

 Dear Councillor Poole

I am writing to you about your e-mail to a Ramsgate resident concerning the Pleasurama meeting held on Wednesday 6 February at the Belgian Café Ramsgate. Your e-mail says

“I would like to put the record straight.........I arrived after the start of the Belgium Bar meeting with Cllr Driver in full flow expounding his usual misinformation and half-truths. This is why I intervened with my 'rubbish' comment. I was referring to what Cllr Driver was saying. I was not referring to the residents and apologise if this was the impression given”.

Your recollection of events is wrong. I did not speak at the meeting until AFTER you had spoken. My opening remarks when I did speak were in response to your outrageous statement that people at the meeting were “talking rubbish”.

The meeting was filmed by the BBC and TV choice. It is clear from their  footage that your comments about “talking rubbish” were directed at the people attending the meeting. The footage also shows that I spoke AFTER you. There were over 80 people at the meeting. Many of them have posted on Facebook and contacted me privately to confirm that I spoke AFTER you.

I can only assume that you have told a deliberate lie in order to avoid blame for your arrogant abuse of Ramsgate residents who have genuine and deep-seated concerns about the Pleasurama development.

I am also rather mystified about your claim that I am peddling half-truths and misinformation about the Pleasurama development. When the BBC challenged you about this claim you ended up agreeing with what I had said!

The transcript of this interview has been widely published including todays Thanet Gazette.

Finally, I am extremely concerned that you appear totally determined to push through the Pleasurama development come what may. You have attacked ridiculed and insulted people who oppose the project. You have accused people of spreading half-truths and misinformation which when challenged about, you are unable to substantiate. Now you tell lies to extract yourself a difficult situation.Frankly I do not think you are a fit and proper person to oversee the Pleasurama development as you seem incapable of viewing it objectively.Perhaps you should consider you position.  Ian Driver (Councillor)