The petition was set to be presented to the council yesterday until a technicality was pointed out by Cr Glenys Dickson.
Cr Dickson moved that petition organiser Hayden McIntyre not be permitted to speak to the petition because Mr Parry’s appointment was an employment matter.
Mayor Ben Bell opened the floor for the councillors to debate.
Cr Robert McKenzie questioned why the petition could not be spoken to. Mr Bell agreed with him.
"While I may or may not agree with the petition, I still do feel like it should be the right of petitioners to speak ... but as I said before there is a provision in the standing orders, as Cr Dickson rightfully pointed out," Mr Bell said.
Cr Neville Phillips moved that the mayor and councillors not receive the petition.
Cr Keith Hovell seconded the motion, saying it was "divisive and an unnecessary and unwelcome distraction".
Time taken because of petitions and emails had slowed him from undertaking important tasks in the community, he said.
Councillor Paul McPhail supported the words of Cr Hovell.
"I've never witnessed a more vindictive, revengeful, unrelenting, bitter campaign in my life. It saddens me to be part of this community," McPhail said.
The vast majority of councillors voted to reject the petition.
The petition had gained 313 signatures, of which 18 were invalid as they were from addresses outside the Gore district.
It was put forward after the council offered Mr Parry the role while it looked for a new chief executive. Mr Parry resigned a couple of months ago after more than 20 years as chief executive. But he was appointed as interim CEO after the person designated to fill in as interim CEO moved to another job.
Mr McIntyre said he was still gathering his thoughts after not being allowed to speak.
"There wasn’t a lot we could do really," Mr McIntyre said.
He and his supporters walked out of the meeting with one giving councillors the finger.
Outside the meeting, Mr McIntyre said he was not surprised by what occurred.
However, he was not convinced the interim chief executive would really leave.
"From what I believe, there's the potential for this just to be a knock-on effect of interim CEO for three months; six months; a year; two years. Where does it all go?"
The group shared a heated exchange with members of Mr Parry's family.
Meanwhile, inside the meeting, Mr Parry might have inadvertently fed the belief he was not going anywhere, during a discussion on the upcoming long-term plan process.
"If we get to the end of June and I'm still around here and you've got a recommendation to adopt an LTP, I'll be begging you to adopt it."
The council had engaged a recruitment agency in the hunt for its next permanent chief executive.
When asked by RNZ last week if he intended on applying for the role, Mr Parry was coy.
"I haven't even thought about that," he offered.
"And even if I was, I wouldn't be telling you."
ben.andrews@odt.co.nz, additional reporting RNZ
