As 2013 begins, another year has ended and so too has a once proud organization called the Okanagan Landing Fire Department.
After more than 35 years of service to the residents of Okanagan Landing, it has been given a very unceremonious boot out the door by a group of civic politicians who never truly understood what it stood for and who repeatedly made it be known that they had no intention of wanting to do so.
What has not ended, however, is the dismay by many Vernon citizens that neither the representatives of the OKLVFD or concerned citizens in support of their cause were ever granted the right to appear before city council. Democracy in action? I don’t think so.
Democracy is one of the greatest privileges we have in Canada and it involves much more than casting a ballot each election day. Unfortunately, council did not see it this way and would not accept the presentation by a concerned community member of a petition that garnered more than 1,600 signatures in support of retaining the OKLVFD.
Nor would it allow an OKLVFD representative to address council regarding their concerns related to the amalgamation with the Vernon Fire Department.
Whether you agree with the decision by Councillors Cunningham, Lord and Quiring and Mayor Sawatzky, who voted for amalgamation or not, if you are a person who believes that all citizens have the right to be heard by their political representative on important matters of concern, then you are probably troubled by how this situation was handled.
Yes, the letter of the law was adhered to by city council but the true underpinnings of democracy were not.
So I guess that now leaves citizens who believe that this situation was not handled democratically to wait for the next chance to voice their concerns, that being the next civic election.
At least at that time, I know my voice, in the form of my ballot, will be honoured.
Dan Dueck
