a Ve ase eT

AEE hal Lh

K

I

ShAaTh

fone denis

3

&
i
i

cae

SES RS NG RTE ILA TE LIE

AS tae

MEN LW GRAAL Ub SSE:

Ey DOP A all AIDE Vin dt

%
#

a
a
q
a
a
3
uy

Wer LPs,

i a hE

tet

Oe TEY Lae ate

Lee Fite

SET aan,

alate i es he wa

ala tet evi ae

anette Een,

AE te eet

‘
cai

ee ae A A in OE ll el le ON ie Na Om a ek kk kh hk
—

ee SS 2

- Vote change advocate CRIME ai
says thenew way |
will benefit the North

NORTHERNERS
SHOULDN’T: be worried
that a proposed new system
to elect members of.the pro-

cate for electoral change.
_ Nick Loenen.

rable voting (STV) system

ers more ‘power than ‘they
now have.
-The North now has 10

: cial legislature,, meaning
' that a political party could
very well afford to ignore
the region and still be elect-
ed to power, says the former
Richmond Member of the
Legislative Assembly.
A switch to STV, in
which there will be the same

-- number” of legislators’ as

now but with fewer ridings,
‘means voters will have more ;
choice, he said.
Instead ‘of electing” just
-one MLA, a voter in a larger
riding could elect two or
- more legislators. It. means
- voters: can either choose to
:.vote for a party or a person.
The prospect of electing
‘More independent-minded
MLAs means. parties will

have to pay more attention:

: to what people want their

legislators to do if they wish

: to form a government or to
stay in power, said Loenen.

“The North’ would not

have more influence than,

the numbers warranted,” he
: Said. “Currently it has less

‘ rant,” Loenen said. “Every
vote will count,”
‘“Loenen was in the North

last week pushing for people
‘to vote for a switch to STV
by saying “yes” in a referen-
dum being held at the same

'“ time as the May 17 provin-

* cial election.

‘

4744 Lakelse, Terrace
l 952 Wakashan, Kitimat

1323 Main, Smithers

vincial legislature will leave’ .
them out in the decision-
making cold, says an advo-.

. says a.
switch to the single transfer- |

will actually give northern-

seats in the 79-seat provin-

+
’
&
:
‘
;
4
4
; influence than numbers war-
f
é
i
i)

to ‘eat fresh:

: | AETER 7PM !
_ SPECIAL

| | ree 210z. drink and
chips with purchase
of any. 12” sub

I Not valid with any other offer. + Expires March 31, 2006.

i 601-2nd Ave., Prince Rupeit 627-1561 | |

—— =

Nick Loenen .
He noted that the vast.
majority of the 160 mem-

bers of the Citizens’ ‘As-

sembly on Electoral Reform |
recommended that the STV. .

method be put toa referen-
dum.
What it does is retain ge-

" ography as a factor by keep-—

ing the riding system intact
but - allows voters more
choice. by giving them the
capability of electing more
than one legislator.

It also speaks to the idea |
_of ‘proportional representa-

tion, the idea that the num-,
ber of seats a party has in the.
legislature is based on the

“number of votes it gets.

Loenen got into the busi-
ness of changing the current
winner-take-all method of
voting after ‘a five-year stint
as a Social Credit MLA be-
tween 1986 and 1991.

“T left:rather jaded. Par-
ticularly: in . our . system,
MLAs cannot represent the "
views of their constituents.
MLAs are kept in check b y
the premier and his cabinet,”

hesaid,  °
Loenen _ preferred . “his

days in municipal politics
where people, he said, could
sit and discuss the merits of

- any one issue before making

635-1994 4744 Lakelse, Terrace 635-1994 , .

632-2991 l [ 952 Wakashan, Kitimat - 632-2991 l
601-2nd Ave., Prince Rupert. 627-1561 |

847-4771 1323 Main, Smithers 847-4771

“ment,

rr

a decision.

Although | ‘Loenen - says :
_ established political parties

aren’t in favour of electoral

change, as it will shift power .
away. from those in charge,:.
he does give Premier Gordon .

Campbell credit for continu-
ing on with a process he had
made to establish a citizens’
assembly.

“T guess, really, Camp-
bell. looked at 1996 when he

should have won. The Lib- -
erals received 42 per cent of

the vote but didn’t win. The |
NDP received 39 per cent °

and were elected to govern:
> Loenen said.

He. describes STV as a
movement’ aimed .at- mak-

_ing public policy from. the

ground up instead of having

decisions handed down from ,

above. =

It’s why a system is need-
ed that can give “as much
voice as possible to people

-who vote for a variety of

2 FOR $8. 99

SUNDAYS
Pizza, Meatball
Trio, Tuna, Ham —

parties, Loenen continued.
“Voters deserve ‘to be

heard in the legislature,” he —

Said. :
-Loenen said norttiern-
ers seem more focused on
change than do people in the
South, perhaps because they

_ feel nobody in Victoria pays

attention to what is happen-
ing in the region.

“T heard in Prince George,
at UNBC, and in Mackenzie
that people want MLAs to
speak for.them,” he said.

Loenen did acknowledge.

that the proposal needs at .

least 60 per cent of voters to
say “yes” in at least 60 per
cent of the ridings. .
And he says the campaign
to oppose the proposal is
growing and well financed.
Loenen said . the .“no”

‘forces are on.the side of

established power brokers
who want to keep control of

‘political parties.

- ootlong)

Not valid with any other offer. Expires March 31, 2005.

se A ee ae a Be ee ae ee

Party

“{

Doors Open:
Show Starts:

Gator’s Pub
Best Western.
Terrace, Inn

Available at:

_- Kitimat

Dare To Dream
Foundation

| Terrace’ s Own...

‘C.D. Release

Saturday, March 96 |
6:30 p.m.
7:30 p.m.

Tickets $20.00 each

Misty River Books -
Sight & Sound, Terrace
' ~ Skeena Mall & Keith Ave.

All proceeds to the

STOPPERS

WV .
“ The Terrace Standard, Wednesday, March 23, 2005 - AQ

635.TIPS

Point. Click. It's that quick!

Check out the Canada Revenue. Agenoy’ s Web site. of.
for all the answers to your income tax ‘questions. re re

 cra.ge.ca

Agence du revenu.

Canada Revenue
> du Canada

“Agency .

‘The all new 2006 Jetta is here. And it’s al grown up. Sort of,

2

Sure, its got a sophisticated new look. But the new Jetta has enough go- power and fun features to sty your less serious
* side, too. For instance: :

° apowerful 2.54itre, 150-hp engine, with available 6-speed automatic transmission with Tiptronic”

e newelectromechanical-enhanced steering ond new 4ink fully independent rearsuspension for improved handling’

e refined styling so you'll look good, even in your sweats)

e more passenger room and 20% more storage space than current Jetta models

Nicely equipped for under

*26,500°

e luxury interior, including a locking, air-conditioned glove box (how cool is that?)

So what're you waiting for? Drop by your local Volkswagen dealer for.a test drive today.

newietta.ca

il

* MSRP $26,490 for new 2006 Jetta with manual transmission. Price includes freight ond PDI. Optional automatic transmission $1400 extra. Price excludes ‘options, tile, transportation, dealer charges
and applicable taxes. See dealer for details. Dealer may sell for less. Vehicle may not be exactly as shown. @Tiptronic is a registered trademark of Dr. Ing. hc. F. Porsche AG. oValkswagen 2005

Atall participating Volkswagen Dealers including your local Dealer:

Columbia Autohaus Ltd.
4109 Substation Avenue, Terrace
(250) 635-5717