Allah Ditta facing calls to quit two roles

1:00pm Monday 24th September 2012 in News By Tom Edwards

UNDER FIRE: Allah Ditta UNDER FIRE: Allah Ditta

COUNCILLOR Allah Ditta will face demands for him to quit two high profile roles at Worcester City Council in an open meeting tomorrow night, it has emerged.

The politician’s future will have to be debated under the glare of the entire council after the city’s Labour group submitted a motion calling for him to be forced out.

The group wants Coun Ditta to resign – claiming his actions have “brought the council into disrepute” and embarrassed colleagues.

As the Worcester News reported last month , Coun Ditta, a Conservative, was secretly recorded threatening to “dig up” a dead man’s body during a dispute with a grieving family.

During a row at the city’s private Muslim cemetery he threatened to dig up the body of Monuhor Ali, who died in June aged 74, over a £400 bill for graveyard work.

Mr Ali’s family have refused to pay it as they say Coun Ditta has done no work on the grave, a claim he denies.

The motion calls upon him to “resign immediately” from his two council roles, firstly as vice-chairman of the audit committee, and secondly as chairman of the Hopmarket sub-committee.

The first panel keeps an eye on the council’s finances, while the second one involves managing the affairs of the Hopmarket, a shopping precinct which the authority owns.

Coun Adrian Gregson , the leader of the city’s Labour group, said: “Everywhere we go, when we’re talking to people on the streets, they are saying ‘you’ve got to get him out’.

“These are two important roles and we feel he has brought the council into disrepute.

“A number of people said to us ‘it’s typical of councillors’ – we are all being tarnished by this, a bit like MPs expenses.

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“He knows the way to behave and he’s let us all down.”

For the motion to succeed it will need a majority of votes from the 35 councillors, of which 17 are Conservative, 15 are Labour, two are Liberal Democrats and one is Green.

Worcester’s Conservatives have vowed to stick by him on the basis that when he abused the family he was acting as a volunteer at the cemetery, and not a city councillor.

Coun Simon Geraghty, the leader, said: “We’ll have this debate and discussion on Tuesday, but not before then.”

The police are also investigating the circumstances of the incident after being contacted by the family.

Coun Ditta has already rejected calls to resign and has vowed to “carry on working for the community”.

Comments(21)

Maggie Would says...
1:13pm Mon 24 Sep 12

'Worcester’s Conservatives have vowed to stick by him on the basis that when he abused the family he was acting as a volunteer at the cemetery, and not a city councillor.'
Oh really? It's not because if he loses his seat & a candidate from another party is elected in his place, the Tories will lose their majority then?
Don't treat the electorate like naive mugs, Tories.

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More Tea Vicar says...
1:20pm Mon 24 Sep 12

It makes you wonder how low the Conservatives can go, really.

In the city, they are typified by the Ditta affair and the St Peter's roundabout. Looks dodgy and incompetent.

In the county, they are linked to the almost criminal plans to pave over the countryside with the damaging, anti-democratic SWDP.

And nationally, well, what can you say? Horribly unpopular, and failing at virtually everything they touch.

I thought Labour were bad, but this lot really plumb new depths.

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Maggie Would says...
1:25pm Mon 24 Sep 12

St Peters roundabout? If you mean the Whittington roundabout, that's the responsibility of the county. They do highways.

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patriot2879 says...
1:49pm Mon 24 Sep 12

get rid of him hes no good for Worcester hasnt done anything for worcestershire but make it worse he is more interested in raising money for other countries, hes given taxi drivers more spaces as theyre all his friends and less free parking for ourselves, i wont vote conservative until hes gone,

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Baldrick1955 says...
1:56pm Mon 24 Sep 12

Surely now would be the best time to step down? He need not resign; just stand aside until the police investigation is over, if as the tories claim, he was off duty at the time, then this is a civil case, for the police to investigate, for demanding money with menaces.
By acting as they are, the conservatives are showing the good people of Worcester, what a shameless bunch they are.

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mayall8808 says...
2:26pm Mon 24 Sep 12

CON servatives never go until they are pushed, its about time Geraghty went with him.

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denon says...
2:53pm Mon 24 Sep 12

mayall8808 wrote:
CON servatives never go until they are pushed, its about time Geraghty went with him.
Whittington roundabout is a county responsibility and is in Wychavon not Worcester City

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denon says...
2:53pm Mon 24 Sep 12

mayall8808 wrote:
CON servatives never go until they are pushed, its about time Geraghty went with him.
Whittington roundabout is a county responsibility and is in Wychavon not Worcester City

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Truepear says...
3:27pm Mon 24 Sep 12

Maggie Would wrote:
'Worcester’s Conservatives have vowed to stick by him on the basis that when he abused the family he was acting as a volunteer at the cemetery, and not a city councillor.'
Oh really? It's not because if he loses his seat & a candidate from another party is elected in his place, the Tories will lose their majority then?
Don't treat the electorate like naive mugs, Tories.
Well said! They need to act upon what is right and what is wrong. They know what he has done and his history and are only defending him in a vain attempt to cling on to power.

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Truepear says...
3:38pm Mon 24 Sep 12

I have recently found out he owns a property next door to Blessed Oldcorne School in Timberdine Avenue, which he is in a dispute with the school over its boundary. From what i can gather Mr Ditta enjoys a good dispute!

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Truepear says...
3:42pm Mon 24 Sep 12

http://planningapps.
worcester.gov.uk/ima
ges/dv_pl_files%5CD1
1B0129/email_web2012
0905085204.pdf

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Maggie Would says...
3:44pm Mon 24 Sep 12

Baldrick1955 wrote:
Surely now would be the best time to step down? He need not resign; just stand aside until the police investigation is over, if as the tories claim, he was off duty at the time, then this is a civil case, for the police to investigate, for demanding money with menaces.
By acting as they are, the conservatives are showing the good people of Worcester, what a shameless bunch they are.
Demanding money with menaces is not a civil matter, Baldrick, but a criminal one. The police don't investigate civil matters.

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mayall8808 says...
4:15pm Mon 24 Sep 12

denon says...
2:53pm Mon 24 Sep 12

mayall8808 wrote:
CON servatives never go until they are pushed, its about time Geraghty went with him.

Whittington roundabout is a county responsibility and is in Wychavon not Worcester City'

Whats that got to do with this article??? my comment is in relation to the Conservative attudes to the above situation denon.

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Baldrick1955 says...
4:38pm Mon 24 Sep 12

I stand corrected, either way he needs looking into

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Gillian1961 says...
4:40pm Mon 24 Sep 12

This councillor seems to be a law unto him self, not saying he is the only one they let the power go to they head, then think they are invincible, he seams to like the publicity so if you step down you can be front page.

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Truepear says...
4:45pm Mon 24 Sep 12

It will be interesting to see what happens tomorrow at the full council meeting!

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brooksider says...
5:01pm Mon 24 Sep 12

Truepear wrote:
I have recently found out he owns a property next door to Blessed Oldcorne School in Timberdine Avenue, which he is in a dispute with the school over its boundary. From what i can gather Mr Ditta enjoys a good dispute!
I wonder what he does with the top soil?

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patriot2879 says...
5:08pm Mon 24 Sep 12

all the work he ever does including fundraising is for the Asian community, what about the other organisations and charities, i remember a year or so ago he set up a fund raising event for Pakistan, what about fundraising for Worcester? why do taxi drivers need more spaces? they have them now and still park on double yellow lines as reported a week ago, we have less free parking available know, he must go he is ruining Worcester

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jowid says...
10:26am Tue 25 Sep 12

councillor gregson states '“A number of people said to us ‘it’s typical of councillors’ – we are all being tarnished by this, a bit like MPs expenses , mmm did he say this when his collegue who just happened to record the cemetary argument , ex councillor nazrul islam. was sentenced to two years in prison at hereford crown court for dishonesty in trying to obtain a uk visa for some one. Its a bit late for the pot to call the kettle black . and it seems mr islam has been forgiven and is back meddling in local politics . you are right mr gregson it appears you all the same.

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brooksider says...
11:17am Tue 25 Sep 12

I think you fail to grasp Councillor Gregson is speaking about a Councillor in office, holding positions of responsibility and his fitness to do so, whilst your comment is about an person who ceased to be a Councillor and colleague in 2002.

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grumpy woman says...
8:33pm Thu 27 Sep 12

And this is democracy? Cllr Ditta says he wants to be judged by the public. The only way to do this is to resign and stand for re-election. Then he would know whether the public support him.

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