The following is an excerpt of a presentation made by VOTES Chair, Bill Longworth, to Oshawa City Council, April 10, 2007
The only meaningful vote is one that has the potential to change your political leaders. Oshawa's experience with the 7 councils elected under the general vote prior to 1985 was that all change on council took place through death or resignations of members...not through the vote.
Therefore the vote was an exercise in futility. It was meaningless in effecting change. It was not a real vote.
It was like a vote in China, or Russia, or Egypt, or many other places you can mention. People are able to vote...but they are not real votes because they have no role to play in selecting the political leaders or the parties that form the government. They are not real votes.
So Oshawa Council by wanting to change to the general vote is effectively taking your "real" vote away from you---they are stealing your vote.
Politicians are only accountable to the people in relation to the public's ability to remove them from office through the "real" vote. If they cannot be removed, they are not accountable. If they cannot be removed, they can do anything and get away with it.
There is ample evidence in history (even recent and present history) of the havoc that can be caused by leaders, political parties or dogmas that cannot be removed by the people.
Amazingly, we are discussing this loss of the real and meaningful vote one day after Canadians celebrated our WWI victory at Vimy Ridge where thousands of Canadian soldiers died trying to preserve freedoms for the world and for those back home in Canada.
Amazingly, we are also fighting today in Oshawa to save the “Real Vote” that is the basis of our democratic freedoms---the very thing our troops were fighting for and are continuing to do so in Afghanistan today---to bring real votes to people so that they have some control over their political destiny.
Oshawa is blessed with huge populations in citizens of Eastern European Heritage. Their forebearers came here to obtain freedoms like the "real vote" that could make a difference.
Oshawa has some councillors whose ancestors came here for that freedom. Surprisingly, some of these Eastern European Heritage Councillors are today voting to take away the real vote that their ancestors came here to cherish.
Hopefully the soldiers' sacrifice was not in vain.
Hopefully the ethnic communities do not lose their sense of freedom in Canada that members of their ethnic community are wanting to take away.
Hopefully, those members of Oshawa City Council who are presently wanting to steal our "real" vote---Mayor Gray and Councillors Shouldra, Pidwerbecki, Parkes, Marimpietri, Kolodzie, and Henry will soon start rethinking their positions on the ward/general vote question and honour the sanctity of our most basic freedom, the freedom to cast a "real" vote that can make a difference.
We must celebrate our freedoms...not trample them!
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