THE leader of Oldham Council has described complaints made against him to police as “politically motivated” and “an abuse of the criminal justice process”.
The complaints were made by a group who allege corruption within the council and a ‘cover-up’ of grooming gang activity in the area, and by citizens unrelated to said group.
The group’s most prominent member, Raja Miah was expelled from the Labour Party in August, 2019, and the ensuing complaints include claims of harassment regarding communications between Cllr Fielding and the employers of his accusers, who claim the Labour Council leader attempted to have them sacked.
A breach of personal data was also alleged and reported to the Information Commissioners Office.
Yet all complaints raised with the police, after being investigated, have been dismissed – with no further action being taken.
“Complaints submitted against me to the police have all been filed with no further action” Cllr Fielding told VoteWatch.
“I was not called to interview or to take part in the investigation in any way. I was only notified of their closure as a matter of courtesy given that it had been posted publicly online that these reports had been made.
“I was never in any doubt that the allegations against me had no substance and were simply politically motivated, tit for tat complaints. However, the abuse of the criminal justice process, and waste of police time and resources that these investigations were, just so that my political opponents could post online that I was ‘under investigation’ and facing ‘imminent arrest’ is quite shocking.
“Indeed, it is a criminal offence in itself.“I will continue to represent my constituents in Failsworth and attend to my wider responsibilities as Leader of the Council with the same enthusiasm and commitment as I always have.
“I will not be knocked off course by those who have nothing positive to contribute to our Borough, or the wider debate about its future, and whose agenda is simply to disrupt the operation of public services and make outrageous claims online in their quest for validation in the form of Facebook likes.”
