Heide Ward Councillor Michelle Kleinert has been elected mayor and Koonung Ward councillor, while Mike Zafiropoulos AM is the new deputy mayor for 2016-17. The appointing took place at a Special Meeting of Council on Tuesday 8 November.
Zafiropoulos and Kleinert thanked the residents of Heide Ward for electing them and promised to continue their efforts to represent the community with all their energy, looking forward to developing a cohesive team environment and a smooth working relationship between councillors, officers and the city.
Mike Zafiropoulos came to Australia as an 18-year-old computer science student in 1967. He has served as general manager of SBS, chair of Channel 31, president of Fronditha Care and is the architect of Speak Greek in March as well as a lifetime Australia Day Ambassador.
“Being an Australian means that you belong to a family. It’s a sharing experience, it’s an experience of pride and loyalty, it’s an experience of pride that you’re a member of the nation,” he has said in a previous interview with Neos Kosmos, and according to those values he plans to serve Manningham community.