AS Plaid Cymru yn galw ar yr Ombwdsmon i adolygu penderfyniad am gyn-Arweinydd Cyngor CNPT

Mae AS Plaid Cymru Sioned Williams wedi galw ar Ombwdsmon Gwasanaethau Cyhoeddus Cymru i adolygu’r penderfyniad nad oedd cyn-arweinydd cyngor Castell-nedd Port Talbot, y Cynghorydd Rob Jones, wedi torri Côd Ymddygiad y cyngor.

Recordiwyd y Cynghorydd Jones yn annerch cyfarfod preifat o’r Blaid Lafur ac fe'i glywyd yn siarad yn agored am ailgyfeirio gwariant cyngor i wardiau Llafur ac i ffwrdd o wardiau a ddaliwyd gan Blaid Cymru. Nododd hefyd ei fod yn ffafrio cynllun ysgol ddadleuol Cwm Tawe, cyn i’r ymgynghoriad cyhoeddus ddechrau hyd yn oed. Roedd hefyd yn ymddangos ei fod yn honni bod y Cynghorydd Annibynnol ar gyfer Blaendulais wedi ei eithrio yn fwriadol o ddatblygu cynlluniau'r rhaglen i uwchraddio Amgueddfa Glofa Cefn Coed. Yn ogystal, fe alwodd gyn-Aelod y Senedd, Bethan Sayed, yn ‘fuwch’.

Cyhoeddwyd y sylwadau ar y cyfryngau cymdeithasol ar Fawrth 5ed 2021. Cyhoeddodd yr Ombwdsmon y penderfyniad ar Orffennaf 20fed gan nodi nad oedd y Cynghorydd Jones wedi torri'r côd ymddygiad ar gyfer aelodau awdurdodau lleol yng Nghymru.

Mae paragraff 7 (b) (v) o'r Cod hwnnw, yn nodi "rhaid i aelodau beidio â defnyddio, nac awdurdodi eraill i ddefnyddio, adnoddau eu hawdurdod yn amhriodol at ddibenion gwleidyddol", tra bod paragraff 6 1 (a) yn nodi "rhaid i aelodau beidio ymddwyn mewn modd a allai yn rhesymol fod wedi dwyn anfri ar eu swyddogaeth neu eu hawdurdod ".

Plaid MS Sioned Williams stated:

“I have written to the Ombudsman calling on him to review his decision that Councillor Rob Jones has not broken the Code of Conduct.

“Having listened to the recording and read the Ombudsman’s published report, it is difficult to understand the conclusion.

“The context of the recording was significant, namely that Cllr. Jones was speaking to members of the Labour Party and claims that he could make or overturn decisions for the benefit of Labour councillors and candidates while disadvantaging elected members of other parties. This seems to demonstrate a deliberate act incompatible with the standards of public life.

“Either Cllr. Jones was telling the truth when addressing the Labour members - and thus admitting improper behaviour and breach of paragraph 7 (b) (v), or he was misleading his audience, perhaps in order to impress and thus appears to be bringing the council into disrepute, in breach of paragraph 6 1 (a). 

“The Ombudsman’s decision notice states that he has investigated the claims and that he feels that paragraph 7 (b) (v) has not been breached.

“By extension therefore, it seems the Ombudsman felt that Councillor Jones misled the meeting of Labour party members around the possibility of misusing local authority resources, therefore giving them a misguided notion of how a council should be run. That surely brought his office and the authority into disrepute.

“There is no doubt that his behaviour has undermined public confidence in the Council, and the Ombudsman's report has not restored Cllr. Jones’ reputation, nor the confidence of local people that the Council had been acting free of partisan influence. The decision needs to be reviewed.”