I write this on the 19th September; two days after the election when normally we would have the final winner and business could have some surety of where to head for the next three years.

Last week I thought how wonderful next week will be, to be in a world where we have no more Government electioneering for three years. No more bribes, no more politicians finding something bad about someone else to help their cause, or trying to win the vote from people who aren't really interested in any more than their own personal needs and survival of today.

What a pain it was, having to put up with stuff journalists saw as important. It made me wonder if journalism has lost its ability to report on factual important things that could change our lives and the country's future. What happened to investigative reporting when the facts, the untruths and the answers where compared, investigated, and reported on? Perhaps our society gets more satisfaction from all that rubbish, and the real issues are boring.

Wanganui, where to now? It may have been said before that this region is on the up and up, but I believe we are now in an amazing position to move forward at a pace not seen here for a long time….Hold on to your hats, and if you don't have one, buy one.

The appointments, the opportunities are all happening at the same time. David Warburton as our City's new CEO, what an excellent choice of person. David has the ability to lift us all to a new level. Wanganui Inc with its new CEO John Quigley appears to have the background to move the city forward and perhaps in a direction we haven't thought of. We appreciate the contribution Phil Kearney has made to Enterprise Wanganui and our City. We can only hope that we don't lose someone with Phil's talents from our city.

Add to the mix; Wanganui Inc bringing the future of Wanganui in to one group and the Major Regional Initiative (MRI) in Tourism. The MRI is a product of the Ruapehu-Wanganui-Rangitikei Regional Partnership, representing three district councils and 12 Iwi, with New Zealand Trade & Enterprise as a funding partner.

Also to have Chester Burrows as our new MP is indeed a coup for National. Chester is someone with a huge passion for this region and I believe will not leave a stone

unturned to assist business growth here. We are indeed fortunate to have not only Chester , but Jill Pettis as a List MP, and Tariana Turia as co-leader of the Maori Party and all from Wanganui.

It would be good to see, and hopefully not impossible, if the three of them and perhaps Simon Powell MP for Rangitkei could get together and see how as a team they can drive this region from a united front. Together they could help our people far more effectively than operating alone. It would also be disappointing and counterproductive if they could not leave their political differences for parliament, and just work as a coalition for our region. What an example they could be to our children.

The Brethren have been portrayed during the election as a group of people we should be suspicious of. Well how far from the truth this is. I personally have lots of experience with these people in business in our city. They are positive people who contribute something like 29 different business operations right here and employ many staff of whom have nothing but praise for them as employers. Many people in business could have a look at how these businesses grow so quickly with good marketing and a vision not seen in a lot of small to medium businesses. They compete nationally and bring a lot of wealth to our whole city. We don't all have the same beliefs or do the same things as each other at the weekends but we should respect other people and appreciate their contribution to our city.

Our city is on a high but I feel some businesses are only working for today's business explosion and not thinking what happens if it all stops. They need to be always the chosen business whether they are busy or not.

I am amazed at the amount of comments you get from people about how trades people are too busy to even show up when they say they will, taking weeks to price things or don't even bother, never ringing to apologise for the delay or looking after there future customer. I know we all muck up, but don't let these good times drive people to use out of town services because we all will be the looser long term.

I have said it before; we should support other businesses in Wanganui. At least have a look around, say for example the local car yards before you buy out of town. We have a lot of national chains here along with a lot of locally owned businesses; just remember they are all contributing in some way to your city. Encourage your family and staff to consider them all first, they are all contributing to the growth of our city.

The more working people we have here the better off we will all be. You may be able to save a few dollars somewhere else, but how important is your contribution and commitment to the success of the city you live in.

Perhaps as the Wanganui region grows there will be more opportunity for your children to remain here, or perhaps come back to bring up their children near their grandparents. Things like our rates etc will be shared by more people and possibly costing us all less. The spin off may be greater than you realise.

The only down side is; someone else may be travelling to work at the same time as you and congest our streets and slowing you up for a minute or two.

Warren Ruscoe
President; Wanganui Chamber of Commerce