Female mayors and strong female representation aren't new in Whitehorse. Six of the current 11 Councillors are women. But history was made last night as the Whitehorse City Council elected women to the positions of both Mayor and Deputy Mayor.
Councillor Tina Liu was elected Mayor and Councillor Denise Massoud was elected Deputy Mayor. Both are experienced councillors, having served on Council for 5 and 9 years respectively.
New Whitehorse Mayor, Cr Tina Liu grew up in Box Hill and has spent most of her life in the area. She serves on the Whitehorse Business Group, the Eastern Alliance for Greenhouse Action (EAGA) Executive Committee and the Eastern Transport Coalition (Deputy Chair). She is also an honorary advisor to the Melbourne Taiwanese Chamber of Commerce.
In accepting the role, Cr Liu spoke of her commitment to working together with her fellow Councillors, the administration and Whitehorse community. She notes that the road ahead is one of recovery from the pandemic, with ongoing support for our community, and driving the revitalisation of Whitehorse. She acknowledged her heritage and the importance of having Whitehorse's diversity reflected in leadership roles.
Deputy Mayor, Cr Denise Massoud has served on Council for 9 years. She is a Board Director and President for the Victorian Local Governance Association (VLGA), is Deputy Chair for the Eastern Affordable Housing Alliance and is on the Executive Committee as Metro Vice President for the Australian Local Government Women's Association.
She is a member of the Whitehorse Disability Advisory Committee and is particularly proud of her advocacy for lift access at Blackburn Station. She also sits on the Whitehorse Reconciliation Advisory Committee, the Whitehorse Community Grants Panel, the Audit and Risk Committee for Council and the Metropolitan Local Government Waste Forum.
Their Councillor peers congratulated them warmly and wished Mayor Cr Liu and Deputy Mayor Cr Massoud very well for their 12-month terms.
Outgoing Mayor, Cr Andrew Munroe, and outgoing Deputy Mayor, Cr Raylene Carr, were commended by Councillors on their excellent service throughout 2021. The challenges of COVID were acknowledged, and both Cr Munroe and Cr Carr expressed their disappointment that so many community events were not able to take place in person during 2021, and they looked forward to a return to more community events in Whitehorse in the coming year.
