Arriving in this country as a student refugee over 50 years ago, I qualified as a chartered accountant and spent more than 30 years as a Finance and Operational Director. When I decided to step away from the daily grind, I chose to give back to our community in Surrey Heath, which has been our home for the past 39 years, by becoming a councillor.
At that time, the political landscape had changed significantly due to Brexit, leading me to join the Liberal Democrats. Upon becoming a Councillor, I was elected as the Leader of the Liberal Democrats. Recognising the need for effective local council leadership, I collaborated with the Conservative leader and other groups to create a balanced council.
However, in 2023, the local Surrey Heath Liberal Democrats wanted a leader who would fully align with their views. The new leader, lacking both Council and public sector finance experience, declared that the Council would be bankrupt in two to three years. I made it very clear that this was a blatant untruth. Despite my repeated objections, these false messages continued to be disseminated via the local party website, presumably with the local Liberal Democrat party campaign team’s approval.
What surprises me to this day is that the Liberal Democrat Executive, sitting alongside the leader, has not objected to this blatant untruth. As you can see from the Council website, all the published accounts clearly show that the Council is not bankrupt.
The leader refuses to acknowledge that he knowingly misled the people of Surrey Heath he knowingly misled the people of Surrey Heath for political gain. The damage from his statement will be felt by the residents of this Borough for a long time. I decided that I could not support a leader who was willing to sacrifice residents’ welfare purely for political gain.
Having observed the Council under the current leader and his administration, I can no longer remain silent while the hard work I put into achieving a balanced Council, as the leader of the Lib Dems and the main opposition leader for four years, is undone by poor leadership.
Large parties like the Conservatives and Labour have a diverse collection of people that reflect society.
Based on my experience with the Liberal Democrats, both locally and nationally, it has become clear that Surrey Heath Liberal Democrats is no longer a place where someone like me is welcome.
- Cllr. Sashi Mylvaganam, Surrey Heath Borough Councillor for Frimley Green
