Another election is over - and about time.
Most of us are probably “promised out”- having heard for the last month all the nice things our elected officials are planning to do for us.
It was interesting to note one particular promise made by almost all the candidates who were present at the Keremeos all candidates forum held on May 2 at Victory Hall.
One resident asked the panel how they would respond to MLA salaries and pensions once elected.
“You need to lead from the top,” the resident said, referring to salaries and pensions that were out of line with comparable private sector work.
“You need to show leadership.”
NDP candidate Hancheroff said that he was running for election to make a difference, and did not know how much an MLA gets paid.
Green Party candidate Kwasnica asked the resident to consider senator pay and compensation paid to ICBC executives as examples of excessive remuneration. He agreed that salaries needed adjustment.
Independent candidate Popoff described MLA pensions as “undefined, unfunded and indexed,” making them endlessly expensive and unsustainable. He promised to support a more acceptable pension plan and work to reduce the annual salaries of MLAs, which he declared to be in the order of $140,000 per year.
Liberal candidate Larson promised that she wouldn’t be looking for a pension, or taking one. She also agreed to review MLA salaries.
The candidate’s answers were reminiscent of questions posed to our local rural directors during the last municipal campaign, regarding such things as food perks and remuneration.
From our perspective, it’s a campaign promise that has been long forgotten by our local reps.
Hopefully, our provincial representative will have a better memory.