With the upcoming election in October, we’re beginning to hear some rather disturbing comments made by a few people running for city council. This would include incumbents and newcomers alike. The comments in question have to do with name recognition.
According to some people running for office, it really doesn’t matter what decisions you’ve made while on city council or even what newcomers might stand for. It’s simply a matter of how many times voters have seen your name in the local papers or what events you’ve attended or how many babies you’ve kissed or how much you've spent on your campaign or even how good you and your family appear on Facebook.
May we suggest that, rather than prove these people right, we begin by asking incumbents and newcomers the questions that are important to each of us. For instance:
• Now that our current city council is in favour of increasing the density of our city by two times, what does this look like to them and what ideas do they have for enacting this plan?
• Are they prepared to listen and follow through with the wishes of the taxpayers of this city whenever possible?
• How do they feel about regular project cost overruns and no apparent contingency plans for dealing with these situations?
• Will they work for the good of St. Albert or is this office just a stepping-stone for bigger and better opportunities later on?
Allowing ourselves to be swayed by name recognition alone does everyone a disservice and has the potential to provide us with yet another government whose priorities are not always aligned with its constituents.
Fred Trotter, St. Albert
