Editor:
Re: Are civic candidates in it for the full term?, letter to the editor, Sept. 24
Mr. Garbutt raises a question regarding the intentions of candidates for the upcoming local elections, asking if we all intend to stay for the full four years. While I haven't canvassed every candidate, I have spoken with a few and the universal response is that we wouldn't be running if we weren't committed to Delta.
Let's look at the reason that we citizens of Delta were shortchanged in local representation. Scott Hamilton was successful in his bid to be an MLA. Rather than resign from council, he requested a leave of absence until the end of the year, after which it would be too late to call a by-election. This request was supported by Mayor Jackson and councillors Paton and Campbell among others. In fact, the only person that I'm aware of that spoke against it was councillor Bishop.
While I don't begrudge Mr. Hamilton wanting to represent Delta at the provincial level, I do take issue with Mayor Jackson and her team denying Delta the opportunity to have a full complement of councilors working for the citizens of Delta.
Lori Mayhew
