Thank you, News & Mail, for the opportunity to write my first-ever column to reflect on the real-life worries of Knaphill and Woking residents. 

As a community-led individual who has never been affiliated with any political party, I hope to convey concerns with impartiality without the constraints of party loyalty and fear of losing the party whip or deselection.

I also know what it feels like not to be listened to by politicians, and I want to help my community have a voice. 

More importantly, we must restore trust in local democracy and address resident concerns without the divisive tribal politics with an us and them attitude often seen in Westminster.

Crucially, I decided to stand as an Independent, not to reinvent politics but to add balance and trust with the public’s sole interest at heart despite the main parties’ offers to stand as their candidate. 

I believe politics is about serving people, not for self-serving and party-political interests or engaging with voters nearer elections to get elected as Woking MP.

Before getting elected last year, I went around Knaphill seven times, knocked on every home, and met many lovely residents. I also witnessed goodness in people’s hearts and shared similar views. 

It made me more determined to do something to help bring it out in the form of a conversational democracy to tackle issues collectively. 

So, when I got elected, I felt privileged that Knaphill residents placed their trust in me.

But regrettably, divisive politics is now rapidly infiltrating at the local level with a blame game played out by the main parties. Residents are quite rightly fed up with the partisan politics they witness or read about in the press with hollow pledges of transparency and openness.

As an Independent, like the residents I am more interested in where we go from here to restore trust in the local democracy. 

Unlike the previous administration, which keeps busy criticising the efforts made by the current one trying to reduce expenditure to deal with the mess they left. 

Equally, the current administration should stop blaming the previous one for effectively bankrupting the council, look at the part they played and stop pointing fingers because three are pointing at them for supporting the borrowing frenzy.

Instead, both parties are now making a song and dance about their initiatives without much difference or even mentioning hypocrisy on their part. One sends out a weak survey asking residents how they would like to get punished for other people’s negligence and then compiles a list of cuts. 

The previous administration has jumped on the bandwagon, opposing every policy and setting up campaigns about car park charges, leisure centre closures, etc, without admitting the part played in creating the mess in the first place. 

It is uncertain if it will achieve anything other than with an eye on the general election to increase its supporters’ base.

Instead of falling over each other protesting over cuts, the residents would like to know where they were when they or their mates were squandering ratepayers’ money on vanity projects. 

Because when it mattered, they didn’t utter a word, stop or oppose when the council embarked on an uncontrolled borrowing spree. 

Even government ministers did not intervene on time. 

In contrast, residents and one or two councillors got ridiculed or shouted down when they spoke!

As I am not affiliated with any political party. I do not have to toe a party line or interests. It allows me to do what’s best for us. I will, therefore, not shy away, but work and fight hard to address the residents’ concerns to save some services and not mothball public facilities as they play a crucial role at the heart of the community protecting the vulnerable. 

For a couple of hundred thousand pounds, we should even consider keeping them open by looking at options to boost revenue and look elsewhere to save that figure.

I appreciate that after years of mismanaged finances, the council has got to learn to live within its means, like residents do with their household budgets. But I am against the pace at which the cuts are proposed, because once lost, they will be gone forever. 

Also, why should residents be punished or made to pay for other people’s mistakes? 

Sadly, the proposed cuts will have severe indirect consequences on residents’ daily lives.

As individuals and a community, we all must come together to prevent adding more pressure on the already stretched council. It will immensely benefit everyone if we are mindful of fly-tipping, anti-social behaviour, litter, dog poop, parking and other violations. Our enforcement agencies, police and local charities are already strained, so it is best not to add more pressure on them.

In my next column, instead of doom and gloom about the journey ahead mentioned in the press, I will make proposals to justify why we should slow the pace of cuts and not turn Woking into a ghost town. 

By working together, the journey will not prove that difficult.