Friday, November 16, 2012

Re: CRD and the Pursuit of Control

[The] Capital Regional District has overstepped it's authority, and it's mandate. It has committed an offence so serious that it could be prosecuted, for spending tax-payer money, and trampling citizen-rights in the pursuit of PR control of an issue which it doesn't even have direct legislative control over, but seeks to represent itself as doing so!

Firstly, the issue is a divisive one, and there are residents in the CRD for it, and residents against it - that is not in debate. The debate is the handling of the issue by the CRD, and now this outrageous slap in the face of democracy. We hope that you can be instrumental in publicizing this attempt to derail democracy. This is not about support for either side of the argument in question - it is about the democratic process and abuses of power. We know that you can focus on that.

The bare facts:

Some residents of urban areas in the Capital Regional District began to notice deer moving into their areas over the last few years. To some, this is a delight, to others it is a nuisance. Those who fell into the "perceived as a nuisance" category, began to complain to their local Councils that "something needed to be done" to rid them of deer in their urban area. At the same time, farmers in the rural areas, who had failed to take the measures necessary to prevent deer from ingressing on their land, were complaining of losses of crops, and seeking redress from Councils for financial losses.  The municipalities mainly side-stepped the issue, (note that certain Councillors had already indicated a bias in sympathy with citizens who wished to see the deer removed by any method necessary), but when it became clear that pressure was mounting (from both sides of the argument - for and against), the municipalities deferred any responsibility for descision-making on the problem to the CRD.

The CRD - puffed up with it's own importance - relished it's moment in the sun! A chance to play God! And that's exactly what it proceeded to do...  It chose to ignore the fact that it was outside it's own mandate as a District Council as 
under Provincial Acts it is directly prohibited from dealing with legislating an animal control issue when the animal described falls under control of the crown (as set out in the Local Government Act), and it launched straight into setting up a fully-funded Citizen's Advisory Group to do just that! (A group which the public took no part in electing, but which was appointed directly by certain Councillors within CRD who had already indicated that they were far from bi-partisan on the subject). Note that any members of the group who were neutral at the outset resigned during the process because the process was so clearly tainted with bias that they didn't feel they could be part of it. This is a matter of record.  The CRD then, having appointed a group which was hand-selected, and already put in place by Councillors who were openly partisan, sought to repeatedly ignore representations from groups and individual citizens which it didn't wish to hear from - and extended invitations to groups and individuals which it DID want to hear from (there is ample documentation of this from both the shunned groups and individuals upon request). It then proceeded to PAY the "Citizens' Advisory Group" thousands to "consider" the issue (financials available upon enquiry), and waste futher thousands in literature, and online outreach to obtain the answer that it clearly wanted to see from the outset... and all outside it's legislated mandate. Not only is that clear partisanship, it's also fraud.

Finally, now the piece-de-resistance. The CRD has discovered that the groups and individuals which it had sought to ignore, or to dismiss, have been seeking to present their side of the argument to individual municipalities, and the CRD has REACHED OUT TO BLOCK THAT FROM HAPPENING. Yes, that's right - the CRD is now telling municipalities which citizens it will allow them to hear in representation on the subject.  Citizens who wish to speak to their own elected municipal Councillors now have to SEEK PERMISSION FROM THE CRD TO DO SO! The CRD has instructed the municipalities not to accept appointments with citizens who wish to speak regarding the issue unless the Councillor or Council has received the permission of the CRD to hear them! When the CRD has vetted their representation, it will allow the municipalities to proceed with accepting an appointment with the citizen, or NOT!

Clearly, this is an abuse of the democratic process so grotesque that it needs to be publicized far and wide. Whatever side of the issue an individual falls into, no citizen of the Province of BC should have to accept such an outrageous abuse of power and clear partisanship. Remembering of course that the whole process that CRD has been seeking to control actually falls outside of their legal remit to begin with, and should they proceed to seek to pass legislation they will be in direct contravention of the Local Government Act!

Further details and cataloguing of the events and decisions can be obtained from many individuals and groups, but your initial point of contact and research can be obtained here:

http://deersafevictoria.blogspot.ca/2012/10/crd-director-muzzles-deer-advocates.html

I am recommending that these people speak with the Ombudsman.

Regards,
Ann Daniels

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