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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 2010-11-04, Page 6PAGE 6. THE CITIZEN, THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 2010. NDP candidate talks energy consumption Writer finds errors in North Huron election Where there’s steam Breakfast at Blyth’s Memorial Hall was on the griddle on Oct. 24 courtesy of the Blyth Legion and the Blyth Legion Ladies Auxiliary. Working the hash brown station was Doug Foell. (Jim Brown photo) THE EDITOR, With winter fast approaching, it is time to heat up an idea long past due. There are many people in Huron-Bruce struggling today. I’ve talked to many of them in my travels across this great riding and they are asking me what we can do right now to make life more affordable? That is why New Democrats are calling on the Harper government to immediately remove the federal portion of the HST on home heating costs before the winter sets in. It is a simple idea that would relieve some of the increased costs imposed on us by the McGuinty-Harper HST. As Ontario Co-ordinator of the National Farmers Union (NFU), I was one of the first public figures from rural Ontario to question the wisdom and impact the HST would have on our families, seniors, the unemployed and farmers. While local Harper Conservative MPs remained silent I was standing up for your concerns. I attended some of the first HST implementation meetings with the provincial government. It was clear from the beginning that the government’s numbers didn’t add up. I spoke out publicly about it and I was attacked for it. One other thing was very clear. The federal Conservative government was calling the shots. Every time an issue was raised to make the HST more fair, government staffers replied that they would have to check with their federal counterparts. The answer was always no. Staying warm during our cold winter months as the snow squalls come in off Lake Huron is not a luxury, it’s a necessity. Lowering that cost is just one of the practical ways my New Democrat colleagues and I are working to ease the burden for hardworking families and seniors. If we can give millions in tax breaks to big oil companies and the banks, surely the government can manage to give Canadians a break on something none of us can do without during a Canadian winter. As your MP, I will be focused on ways to make life more affordable and to make it fairer. I have a long track record of working hard to get things done, and not worrying about whom gets the credit. If the Conservatives want to steal this idea and it means you will have a little more money in your pocket, they can steal it with my blessing. Strong leadership is needed in Huron-Bruce and you don’t get that leadership by staying invisible on the issues that matter to our communities. Grant Robertson Federal NDP Candidate Huron-Bruce THE EDITOR,I have a feeling that thetenets of democracy were not served well in North Huron, and particularly in Blyth, during this most recent election cycle. As an Ottawa-area newspaper recently suggested: people should have a responsibility to get involved in the political process, and that it’s their (our) responsibility to find out who’s running, what their positions are on the issues and to make an informed voting decision. That’s fine, except no potential voter generally has the wherewithal to do all the searching which seemed to be necessary during this, now past, election. Sadly, there seems to be more interest in the results of “Dancing with the Stars” thanthe whole, what and why oflocal municipal issues and who should represent us for the next four years. I think we might have been able to come up with the correct communications formula. This starts with an accurate Voters List. Apparently MPAC didn’t get it right in other jurisdictions either. And you know what, that’s simply not good enough. Those who are responsible locally for ensuring that we, the electorate, are at least minimally engaged have come up short also. According to the Municipal Election Act 1996 (Good Government Act 2006) there were a number of deficiencies apparent in this municipal election, if not in principle, than in spirit. One example isthat we seem to have missed astep regarding Voter Notification Cards. These missteps are simply not good enough. Perhaps the lack of turnout was due to poor information? While not part of any legislated requirement, a local announcement regarding the All Candidates Night was a failure because someone didn’t meet a publication deadline (at least not here in Blyth), and this seemed to continue on through the election. But on the other hand shouldn’t newspapers be on the alert to where the news is happening? The Blyth advance polling station on Oct. 16 was not communicated except on the North Huron website. I was told when I questioned this that “everyone knows thatthere’s always an advancepoll”, which is to say, “you should have known, so it’s your fault if you missed it”. So, if you missed it, you’re not alone. And, by the way, if we’re not accustomed to generally checking websites for information you think you need, or apparently should be looking for, just in case there might be important information (such as an election), then the fault apparently now is ours – and not those whose job it is to inform us. And you know, that’s simply not good enough. But if you did check the polling location in Blyth on Saturday, Oct. 16, it was so poorly identified, you might have missed it. A sign for a “Bingo and Breakfast” offering was vastly superior inits message delivery – andmaybe in the scheme of things considered more important than a four-year commitment by electorate and candidates. So poor communication, combined with poor identification on a four-year decision. That too is simply not good enough. The importance placed on this municipal election seems to have been missed by those responsible for running a responsible election. If these comments are unduly harsh, they are intended to be. There was no direct-to-electorate communication, and if it wasn’t for the candidates’ ads indicating the date, we might not have been reminded. But if you don’t receive the local paper, or access certain websites, you wouldn’t have known.And now to election night. Iwent and took pictures of the polling location – Memorial Hall because someone pointed out to me today that the “Vote” sign taped to the “No Parking Between Signs” reminded them of a third- world election effort. When there is a post- election audit, and I think one should be insisted upon, it should be open and transparent. The reeve and councillors should insist upon an explanation of how the election machine was handled, and how they will commit to improvement in the future. I have forwarded these comments to our councillors- elect, in the expectation that answers will be forthcoming. Greg Sarachman, Blyth. THE EDITOR, I wanted to write a letter to thank the Municipality of Huron East for sucking up the leaves at the curb. It is a big job raking all the leaves, but it is a horrendous job to have to bag them, drive them to the dump and then unbag them. Thank you for picking the leaves up at the curb Huron East. Judy Hahn. Letters to the Editor Thank you HE page 6_page 6 10-11-02 12:27 PM Page 1