 | ||
| ||
 |
|
|
|
|
Home->Kincardine |
||
|
Kincardine’s ward system is revisited. Few wanted the amalgamation of Kincardine, Kincardine and Bruce townships. Bruce certainly did not want to amalgamate. What with the possession of the goose with all its golden eggs locally known as BMTS, Bruce’s politicians were content with the status quo and spent a considerable amount of tax payers’ money to fight amalgamation. The Bruce Council deservedly lost this suit with its irresponsible waste of tax payers’ money. Amalgamation is a fact. Unfortunately, like Caucasian tribal chiefs still fighting after hundreds of years, too many politicians could not bring themselves to accept total integration and we ended up with a ward system whose boundaries are identical to the previous townships and town. It is time to end this self-serving parochial arrangement. It is time to have one municipality called Kincardine, not three principalities. It is time to elect councillors at large from across the entire municipality. And it is past time to have Council truly representative of all voters. I ask Council to eliminate the ward system, elect all members of council at large, and introduce preferential balloting. This will bring council into the 21st century and will be a start for Kincardine to become a model for municipal government throughout Canada. It is a golden opportunity for any or all members of council to demonstrate the leadership and will to achieve a better form of government. Electing at large allows citizens to choose the candidate they believe will best serve the whole municipality. Up-front Bob Campbell would have no problem getting elected in this arrangement. Preferential balloting gives us the most acceptable of all candidates and, should we ever be so fortunate as to have more than two candidates for mayor and deputy mayor, preferential balloting would again give us the most acceptable candidate. This method is fair both for the candidates and for the voters, and beats first-past-the-post by a country mile. With transparent, accountable government employing the municipality website in a fuller and a timelier manner, we will have more than volunteers and flowers to give us pride of place.
|
