Recall the Wrong Course of Action for Anti-HST Forces

(Aired on June 24, 2010)

I have to tell you. Enough is enough. It is one thing to campaign to have the Harmonized Sales Tax reviewed by the B.C. government. Anti-HST organizers have enough signatures in every riding to force the government to have a review, or maybe even a referendum on the tax. I have no issue with their efforts. In fact, I applaud their initiative. That's what democracy is about.

What democracy is not about is trying to target 24 MLAs for a possible recall just because they voted in favour of the HST. That is going way beyond what the recall initiative should be about. And if Bill Vander Zalm carries out this recall initiative, I think he is destroying anything good that the anti-HST initiative was supposed to accomplish.

To recall an MLA, the MLA should stand accused of some gross wrongdoing, maybe facing some criminal charges, or perhaps unethical behaviour of some sort. That's the kind of thing that the recall laws were meant to deal with. To try to recall an MLA simply because you disagree with the government's policy on something is wrong. And way beyond the scope of what the legislation was intended to deal with.

The time to disagree with the government's policies is at a provincial election, and there's one coming three years down the road. If, at that time, you think the government was wrong in putting some sort of policy or tax in place, that's where you deal with it. To target a whole group of potentially vulnerable MLAs because you happen to think the HST is bad is not the right approach. And if organizers in our area try to do that, I hope people will give the anti-HST forces the message that they're carrying things a little too far.