You work hard, right? You wake up early, go to work, pay your taxes, and do your part. But what if your elected representative—who claims to be working just as hard, if not harder—wasn’t actually doing the job you elected them to do? That’s the question Mayor Philip Penfold is asking of Meryl Swanson, the federal MP for Paterson. And it’s a fair one.
Swanson says she spends “every waking moment and some of the sleeping moments” working for her constituents. But here’s the problem: people in Maitland and Port Stephens are saying they don’t see her. Their concerns go unanswered. So where is she? That’s what Penfold wants to know, and he’s got a simple solution—release the diary.
Penfold has called on Swanson to make public her official diary, redacted where necessary, to prove that she’s actually putting in the work. Because words are easy. But actions—well, those are harder to fake. And so far, all we have are words.
But it gets worse. Swanson, a career politician, apparently thinks she’s above local government, dismissing mayors and councilors as “third grade.” Third grade? The people who actually get things done—who fix roads, approve developments, and keep communities running—are just third-rate bureaucrats to her? And this is the same Meryl Swanson who was demoted from a shadow assistant ministry when her party took power. Sounds like someone who’s just a little bitter.
And now she’s trying to tell Penfold that he can’t handle being both Mayor of Maitland and the next MP for Paterson. That’s interesting, considering Penfold won 56% of the primary vote in his last election. People actually want him in charge. Meanwhile, Swanson is asking for a fourth term, after three terms of what exactly?
The people of Paterson have a choice: stick with a politician who hides behind rhetoric or demand transparency. Mayor Penfold is right—Swanson should release her diary. Prove it. Or admit that she’s not as hardworking as she claims.