To the editor
Many in our group have called me asking me to say, ‘thank you, thank you, and thank you,’ to whoever wrote the Sept. 26 editorial Get informed and get your vote on.
Our group has been quietly contacting our neighbours and friends and asking them to contact their neighbours and friends in an attempt to get the citizens interested and out to vote. Thirty percent of the eligible voters showing up at the polls is just a terrible result and reflection of today’s democracy.
We continue to ask what we can do to get more citizens out to vote, or how to get them passionate about voting, or how to get them to believe in, and become involved in, our system again. It’s not “first past the post” or “proportional representation.”
Perhaps it’s because parents are not sitting down with their children at the dinner table and taking 15 minutes per day to discuss the coming election—who is involved and what the issues are in their community (or province or country).
Parents cannot leave this up to schools. They must show an example for their children, make it exciting, and get them involved. Take your children to the polling station and show them what voting and democracy is all about.
Parents take their kids to school, playgrounds, sporting events and hiking trails, so it is understandable it takes a lot of their time. We applaud all parents. It is not easy to help your kids grow in today’s fast-paced mode. However, your kids will be more appreciative, as they get older, that their parents took the time, talked to them about voting and then voted to enable them to have some control over the future we are leaving them.
The next West Kelowna council is going to have the authority to spend approximately $280 million of our money during its four-year term. That does not include what the city can borrow and add to the debt for our children. Shouldn’t the residents pay attention to that spending?
The Kelowna Capital News is doing a tremendous service to our communities by taking on this subject and for delivering all-candidate information to the public so everyone can talk about what is important to them in their community.
The very least we can do as residents is support those, such as the Capital News, who are trying to bring back democratic representation and encourage as many citizens as possible to get out and vote.
Please take on the challenge of the Kelowna Capital News and encourage everyone you come into contact with to get out and vote. Thank You, Capital News.
R. Jackson,
The Audience Group
West Kelowna