Well, as your newspaper editor noted in her most recent column, I’m filling in for her for the next five weeks or so.
Barbara is taking a run at the Mayor’s chair. We wish all the candidates good luck in the upcoming civic election.
As a veteran of covering federal, provincial and civic elections over my 40 years in the business, I have learned the civic elections – municipalities, regional districts and school boards – are the most important for our communities.
They may not seem to be as sexy as the provincial and federal elections with all of the massive coverage of major media and the ongoing pomp and grandstanding.
But dear readers, once we cast our ballots, we really don’t have much say about how and where our hard earned tax dollars are spent.
That is a huge disconnect for we poor commoners – once they’ve got our vote, we’re just along for the ride whether we like it or not.
Another problem with provincial and federal governments is they have the ability to operate with deficit budgets, which are often the result of broken election promises.
Broken promises are not uncommon in senior government politics and, unfortunately, we taxpayers have become desensitized to the “fibs.”
In fact, we have come to a place where we throw up our hands in frustration, shake our heads and say, “why bother.”
And who wins in that scenario?
Correct, the fibbers and not real democracy.
OK, enough of that rant. Let me get back to civic elections.
Councils, regional districts and school boards cannot run deficit budget – all of their budgets must be balanced.
While the landscape can get dicey with unexpected issues often due to new decisions at the senior levels of government, civic governments have to find a way to balance the books.
Fortunately, we as citizens of the community have the opportunity to make our voices heard after the elections are over by simply attending meetings and voicing our opinions during meeting or through letters or talking to the politicians when we meet them on the street.
If we make the effort to get educated and get involved, we can make a difference in our own communities.
Heritage Park
I attended the Terry Fox Run at Heritage Park in Ashcroft on Sunday morning and I was totally blown away by the downtown park.
It is truly a jewel in Ashcroft and vey impressive.
Well done by everyone involved.
I will be recommending it to everyone I know.