One of North Ward’s Councillors, who has been working in Uganda for the past six months, has been relieved from his duties as a Ross Town Councillor. John Gasston has been working away in Namutumba, a Ugandan village which in twinned with Ross-on-Wye, for the past six months.

A spokesperson for Ross Town Council, told the Ross Gazette, “If councillors don’t attend council meetings for six months, they are no longer eligible.”

The matter was briefly discussed at Ross Town Council’s meeting on Monday, December 14th. The Town Council’s Clerk will now ask Herefordshire Council to put out a public notice. This notice will state that if ten or more people from North Ward request an election be held to replace him, an election must be held, by law. However, if this does not happen, the councillors will be able to choose someone and appoint them.

Mr Gasston was present at the Full Council Meeting on December 14th, but spoke in the section allocated for public speakers.

He stated that he would be returning to Namutumba for five months in January. “Things have been going really well,” he told the Council. He said that links between Ross and Namutumba have been strengthened, and it has been a great success story, which has shown the benefit of twinning, and he wanted to commend Ross-on-Wye for “all the hard work going on out there.”

He told the Ross Gazette that he felt that his work in Uganda was more of a calling and that he had explained the importance of his work there when he was elected as a Councillor.