Blacktown Councillor and local solicitor Susai Benjamin has been preselected unopposed as Labor’s candidate for the new seat of Seven Hills for the March 2015 State Elections.
Susai lives in Toongabbie. He works with the NSW State Government and as a pro bono solicitor for the community. In 2007, he established the Toongabbie Legal Centre, a volunteer run free-legal service that provides assistance to local residents who are vulnerable. Susai and his wife Anne (Adjunct Professor at Australian Catholic University and a former Executive Director, Catholic Education Office, Parramatta) have three children who completed primary school in Toongabbie.
As a Blacktown City Councillor, Susai has worked with local residents against local Liberals’ plans to privatise childcare centres, sell open space without proper community consultation and eliminate the council rate concession for pensioners.
“As a proud local, I am committed to listening to the needs of our community and working hard to make a difference,” Mr Benjamin said.
“That’s why I led the successful community campaign to upgrade Seven Hills train station and established the Toongabbie Legal Centre.
“Since 2011 the current Liberal Government has taken our community for granted. They now control the State’s purse strings. The promised upgrade to Wentworthville station has not happened and Pendle Hill and Toongabbie train stations have not been mentioned. These stations have been part of my campaign since 2005. Waiting times at local hospitals have skyrocketed and funding to local schools and TAFEs has been cut.
“We need someone who will stand up for our community to secure a better deal for us.
“As Labor’s candidate, I have started to doorknock and listen to local residents so that I can hear the needs of our community and be a strong voice for them. Our community is a great place to live, work and raise a family, but we can make it better. That’s exactly what I’ll fight to do if I’m elected.”
Published in The Indian Sun, Sydney
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