The relentless pork-barreling of our city
wards has got to stop. The time has come for us to embrace an
idea that will actually make politicians accountable to the
entire city, and less able to make deals with each other out of
the public eye. As it stands, there is an unspoken tit-for-tat
rule in
place, where one councillor votes for
another's initiative in return for reciprocal support on his or
her initiative.
The time has come for us to have
councillors-at-large, representative selected by all the
citizens, not just those in a particular ward.
If this was done, as it has been in other
cities, we could actually get a focused development plan
directed to the downtown, the most important part of the city.
If the downtown thrives, other areas will follow in due
course.
Councillors-at-large will prevent council
members from bribing their constituents with projects, and will
instead make them accountable to the whole city for action or
inaction.
John Grubber
Greater Sudbury