One of the difficulties in being a Councillor is that we must do a continual balancing act. If a scheduling conflict occurs, we can't be in two places at once, so someone is going to be upset that we were present at one place but not another. We also have a kind of "report card" where some meetings have attendance recorded and this record is released to the media every six months. On the face of it, this is a good thing - it lets the public know that councillors are attending some meetings. However, it also means that councillors who are very conscious of their public image know that they can turn up for part of a meeting, have their name recorded, and leave. These meeting statistics end up showing that some councillors were present for some time at a meeting. The councillor who is contributing at another meeting, or who is away representing the city at a conference, is recorded as missing. The meeting statistics have a "feel good" factor of "look, we are being transparent and reporting to you", but are essentially meaningless.
As I said earlier, we are responsible for governance. The day to day administration of the policies and procedures we set is undertaken by council staff. We are responsible for monitoring and reviewing their performance, but we can't tell staff what to do. We have ultimate responsibility for all the City Council's activities. But, we do not have a management role and we can't be "hands on" and fix things. This can be very difficult at times. We fulfil a representative role and regularly receive requests for a council service. While we can act as an advocate we must also act within our authority and in the best interests of the city as a whole.
This is one downside of being a Councillor ' at all times there is someone who is upset with you!
Another downside is politics. While it may seem a silly thing for me to say, the politics of local government is something I just do not enjoy. Often, the petty politics gets in the way of good decision-making and the personality by-play that goes on within the council chamber just plain frustrates me. Debate should be reasoned, well-informed, and related to the issues, with the outcome in the best interests of the city we serve. Yet, too often, it is really about councillors jockeying for position in attempts to boost re-election chances. Some of the game-play that goes on around election campaign time falls under the label "dirty politics" and can be difficult for the families of councillor and mayoral candidates. Some councillors have mastered the 'arts' of deceit and manipulation and are very good at building public opinion through misinformation. This is a side of council I would rather not see happening in my city.
A fellow councillor has called me an idealist. I decided to take that as a compliment.
So, there are some aspects of being a Councillor that I don't like. These are, however, far outweighed by the positives.
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