4 Terrace Review — Wednesday, August, 1988 Lip-service to locals The Ministry of Health’s instructions to the Terrace ‘Health Care Society late last week regarding the building contract for the Terraceview Lodge extended care project reveals that the provincial government’s expressed intent to involve local bodies in decision- making is nothing but rhetoric. Victoria’s head bureaucrat on hospital building, Walter MacLean, says the directive to award the con- tract to the lowest bidder is standard ministry policy. If that’s the case, why involve the local board at all? It would be a foregone conclusion that the lowest bid- der who can get a bonding company to stand behind him has got the contract. The Terrace Health Care Society spent two months pondering the bids on this important project, endured numerous delays from the ministry in the multi-staged approval process, and is now told their expertise, research and recommendation on this issue is to be ig- nored, They appear to be understandably annoyed, and government critics have one more confirmation that regionalization is all talk and no action. A show worth promoting The weather looked threatening at the start, but it didn’t rain on our parade, and by the weekend the sun was even occasionally shining on Riverboat Days ac- tivities. With the party over, it might be a good time to consider the future of Terrace’s annual summer celebration. This year’s organizing committee deserves commen- dation for shortening the party to five days from the 10-day length of previous years, It’s more in keeping with the public’s attention span and easier on the volunteers. It’s also more attractive to passing tourists, who may remain in town for a five-day event but would balk at spending ten days here, particularly when the activities have a rather widely scattered schedule. The level of participation in many Riverboat Days features is an indication that it could grow if given the chance. It’s time for the city government to offer greater financial support than advertising expenses and paying for fireworks. A paid coordinator and pro- moter could oversee scheduling, participation and marketing the event in other communities and through provincial tourism associations. cona/ ee Terrace Review PAID CNA Established May 4, 1985 The Terrace Review is published each Wednesday by Close-Up Business Services Ltd. Publisher: Mark Twyford Editar: .Michae! Kelly Staff Reporters: Tod Strachan Charlynn Toews Advertising Sales: Marj Twyford Typesetting: Linda Copeland Production: Jim Hall, Alvin Stewart, Gurbax Gill, Linda Mercer - Office: - Garrie Olson Accounting: Mar] Twyford Second-class mail registration No. 6896. Atl material appearing In the Terrace Reviaw is protected undar Canadian copyright Registra- tien No. 362775 and cannot legally be rapro- duced for any raason without permission of ihe publisher. Errors and omlasions. Advortising Is accapted on the condition that in the evant of typographical error, that portion of the advertis- ing spate occupted by the erroneous item will nel be charged for, but the balance of tha adver- tlsement will be pald for at the applicable rate. Advertisers must assume responsibility for er- rors in any classified ad whichis supplied to tha Terrace Review In handwritten form. In compliance with the 8.0, Human Rights Act, no adveriisament will be published which discriminates against a person due to age, race, raligion, calor, sax, nationality, ancestry orplace of origin. 4535 Greig Avenue, Terrace, B.C. VaG 1M7 Phone: 635-7840 a Ons year subscriptians: In Canada $24.00 Out of Canada $50.00 Sentors in Terrace and District $12.00 Seniors out of Terrace and District $15.00 eR Letters to the editor will be considered for publication only when signed. Please include your telephone number. The editor reserves ihe right to condense and edit letters. Opinions expressed are not necessarily those of the 7errace Review. ae Some signs of a fresh attitude in the premier by Victoria correspondent Mark Collins The July 20 news conference in the press theater beneath the Premier’s office lacked the ceremonial touches present for the major cabinet shuffle two weeks earlier, but the message was far more significant. Premier Bill Vander Zalm has finally admitted he needs to make some changes to prevent his government from destroying itself. To say he caved-in might be overstating the case but he acknowledges there was “tremendous pressure from many people’’. Even before he called his cabinet colleagues gutless for not supporting his controversial Land Act when he was Municipal Affairs Minister in 1982, his political policy has been to proceed full speed ahead. He achieved his goals first and left the related problems to be dealt with later, often by the next minister in the portfolio. The complaints from within the Social Credit Party have finally had an effect on the man. He has been made to realize that politics requires teamwork and the other members of the team won’t play unless they are given meaningful roles to play. Splitting David Poole’s job, leaving him with political chores while Frank Rhodes comes in to be the deputy minister, has grabbed the headlines but the most signifi- cant part of de-centralizing the decision making process is the reformed planning and priorities committee of cabinet. The committee hasn’t done much in years because Vander Zalm needed his ‘‘hands on’’ approach to make changes quickly. What has emerged is a | formally structured ‘‘inner cabinet’’ with the right people on it. Premier Vander Zalm is the chairman. Finance Minister Mel Couvelier is deputy- chairman, an appropriate role for the holder of the purse- strings. Regional Development superminister Elwood Veitch had to be included. Municipal Affairs Minister Rita Johnston, perhaps the strongest Vander Zalm loyalist in cabinet, was a natural choice. The decision to include new Attorney General Bud Smith, however, was not, Regional representation was one of the criteria and Social Services Minister Claude Richmond, the other Kamloops MLA, was already on the committee, In- clusion of Smith emphasizes that it is areal committee, not just a rubber stamping body, It will put good use to the energy he brings to the political pro- cess. Energy Minister Jack Davis adds the wisdom of his years in federal and provincial politics. Relative newcomers Stan Hagen and Lyall Hanson were included primarily to ensure a balance of representation on the committee. Hagen is from Vancouver Island while Hanson is from the Okanagan. Cliff Michael was put in the “having two ministers from Kamloops and one from Vernon on the com- mittee doesn’t do much for the north.’’ embarrassing position of being dropped from the planning and priorities committee only two weeks after being appointed to it, I could be cruel by saying the committee was strengthened by dropping Michael, or be kind by saying it took five ministers to replace him, but it seems like it was just a mistake in the first place. His Govern- ment Management Services portfolio gives him plenty of work to do and he says he does not mind being left off a com- mittee which will often meet for long hours. Asked to explain the decision to drop Michael, Vander Zalm said “the planning and priorities committee is not only representative of line ministries but it is also representative of the regions of the province. We have three members from the Interior, three members from the Lower Mainland, and two from Vancouver Island plus myself.” That’s not much of an ex- planation. The Premier’s office had some last minute scram- bling to do when Grace McCar- thy declined to serve in cabinet, and this was one detail that. was not well thought out. When it comes to having regions represented in the inner cabinet, having two ministers from Kamloops and one from Vernon on the committee doesn’t do much for the north. These changes deserve to be heralded as a new level of political maturity for Bill Vander Zalm. It will become the worst news the NDP has had in two years if the Premier can avoid the temptation to fall back to his old ways.