The Board of St Spyridon Parish in south east Sydney held its Extraordinary General Meeting (EGM) on Monday, November 21 for members to vote on: (1) Change of company name from ‘The Greek Orthodox Parish of South East Sydney’ to ‘The Greek Orthodox Parish of St Spyridon Sydney,’ and (2) the repeal of existing Constitution and adoption of a new Constitution.
According to The Greek Herald‘s sources, the first motion of a change to the company name was passed by members with over 90 percent agreement. The second motion for a new constitution was also passed with 85 percent support.
Parish member George Savoulis told The Greek Herald a number of questions were raised by members on the night around proxy voting and the fact that people under the age of 21 were ineligible to cast their vote.
Concerns were also raised about members having to put their full names on voting papers, ensuring their vote was not anonymous.
Mr Savoulis said that he accepts the result but he is unsure of what the future holds.
“The membership has voted. We presented our side with dignity and moral integrity and the other side had an advantage and they won in the end,” Mr Savoulis said.
“The Archdiocese has now received control over a parish with an estimated value of over $400 million to do with and to manage as they please.”
The Greek Herald first reported last week the concerns of St Spyridon College parents around the proposed changes to the Parish’ constitution and the ultimate deciding power they give to Australia’s Greek Orthodox Archbishop.
Parents were concerned the changes would impact on educational standards for students.
In a statement to The Greek Herald at the time, Parish President Elia Economou said the proposed changes “will have no noticeable impact upon the day-to-day management and operations of the College.”
