Editor:
Local politics in Sechelt has degenerated to something akin to a kindergarten. Did we really need an outside auditor to tell us that our local council and staff need to “govern and manage more effectively?” How much did we pay for a report to tell us the glaringly obvious? And what was the benefit of going public with a summary of the audit? To get back at the mayor because someone was offended?
And why all the emphasis on the mayor? The audit recommends that Mayor Henderson begin making amends with an apology, but, according to the CBC, it does not specify for what. Did he hurt someone’s feelings? Well, get over it. There are two sides to every story and the dysfunction in council is no exception. It’s not just the mayor!
We elected all of them to do a job and they need to get on with it.
Councillors––and sometimes staff––are all too often ill-prepared and unfamiliar with the details of their brief and that’s a major source of frustration and inefficiency. We have important business that council needs to take care of, and puerile bickering is getting in the way.
Everyone – council and senior staff – should show more respect for each other. If the mayor has been less respectful than he should have been, the same goes for the rest of council.
Keith Maxwell, West Sechelt
