A View from Mount Tuam

Our island is at a crossroads. Many residents see an urgent need for a change in governance style and substance. The limitations of Trust governance have been more evident these past three years than at any time since the Islands Trust's inception, with widespread community concern being felt and expressed in print and at public meetings. Complaints of obscurity, lack of accountability, fiscal incompetence and managerial inefficiency seemingly fall on deaf ears.  A general inability to resolve many of the problems that face island residents has resulted in corrosion of our economy, threats to our rights and freedoms and massive increases in the Trust budget. Below are some of the misfortunes our island has suffered since the last election:  

• An 18% shrinkage in the economy since 2009
• Trustees vote themselves a 100% wage increase
• The RAR debacle
• Salt Spring coffee left the island (losing the island around 40 jobs)
• Two trustees and the CRD director face accusations of financial impropriety
• Our population shrank by 7%
• Four stores in Ganges shut their doors for the last time and one in Fulford
• Fulford Marina docked its last boat 
• Fulford Inn served its last drink
• The Shell Garage stopped pumping gas

With this level of economic contraction, it is vital that trustees accept they need to be more than simply stewards of the natural environment. A holistic view of a 'healthy place' demands broader vision. 

A fresh approach is required to restore trust in our elected officials and how they operate. First and foremost, that approach needs to be built on integrity, ethics and a respect for the rule of law. it needs to restore transparency, accountability, efficiency, openness, participation and responsiveness. 

We pledge to restore faith in our system of governance through a comprehensive reconstruction of the instruments of office using the building blocks of good governance. 

Mark Wyatt and George Grams