Letters, May 27

Opinion

Time for action

Re: Patient pleads for centralized cardiac care (May 26)

The same old story from the NDP over and over again. When there is a problem or an issue in health care that the NDP should be solving in a timely manner, you can almost guarantee that they will blame the previous government for the problems rather than fixing them or saying when they will be fixed.

Time to stop playing the blame game — it is getting tiresome to the people in the province. Either poop or get off the pot, too many people are dying from the current government’s inaction and excuses.

We deserve better!

Ron Robert

Winnipeg

Strategic governance

During the recent federal election Mark Carney was fond of saying that “plan beats no plan.”

It seems to me that this should not mean taking an overly technocratic approach to governing, but rather, governing being more guided by strategic thinking and a strategy than now seems to be the case. This means not only do you need to know what you want to do, but also, crucially, how you’re going to do it.

The not insignificant challenges are that it takes a great deal of effort, lots of time, and explicitly committing to a course of action (which can be risky). And so, I suspect, less of it gets done by governments at any level (municipally, provincially, federally) than we think, and is needed if we are going to address in any meaningful way the many complex issues we face.

So, let’s demand and expect more explicit and obvious strategic planning from all levels of government and correspondingly less aspirational rhetoric because, as they say,“hope is not a strategy.”

Gerald Farthing

Winnipeg

Grateful for show of compassion

Re: Mayor troubled by outreach workers’ role in setting up homeless camp (May 24)

I often despair at both the level and the stark nature of the poverty that one sees in our city.

While reading about the legitimate concerns of the residents of Point Douglas and the mayor, I found myself feeling a sincere sense of gratitude for the programs and most especially the people engaged in tackling this incredibly complex problem each day.

One such worker made a mistake in this case, but I bet he or she has already done a lot more to try and solve this than you or I. Thank you to them.

Gordon Fritzsche

Winnipeg

Need outreach organization’s input

Re: Mayor troubled by outreach workers’ role in setting up homeless camp (May 24)

I am sure the mayor isn’t the only one troubled by the allegation that Main Street Project staff provided support in setting up a homeless encampment recently.

Given that homelessness is such a complex issue, I don’t think anyone expected a straight, easy path to resolution. I appreciate the comments from End Homelessness Winnipeg. However, I do think it’s reasonable for taxpayers, donors, and citizens to hear from Main Street Project. Any organization in receipt of so much public funds shouldn’t have the option to refuse requests for comment from the community’s newspaper.

Refusing to communicate with the public puts the public’s support for the initiative and MSP funding at risk . Not to mention the potential impact on people’s willingness to donate to the United Way and MSP.

Most people appreciate the services provided by MSP and can only imagine the scope of issues faced by staff and clients. The organization needs to share it’s perspective with the public.

Michelle Burdz

Winnipeg

Call inquiry into development

Re: Sio Silica caught in ‘stink’ of Tory Ethics scandal: Kinew (May 24)

The Manitoba ethics commissioner’s report clearly shows that a public inquiry into the Sio Silica development must occur.

The report quoted the Supreme Court of Canada statement on breach of the caretaker convention as “one so serious indeed that it could be regarded as tantamount to a coup d’état.”

I agree with Premier Wab Kinew, “we have to get answers,” but according to the report, asking the former government for these answers is futile. The only legitimate way to do so is through a thorough independent public inquiry of the entire Sio Silica development. This includes the very closely interconnected processing facility licensed prior to the CEC review of the extraction portion. It likely suffered the same pervasive “pressure” discovered in the report.

Manitobans need to know our assessment and licensing process and democratic institutions are sound. I trust Kinew will do the right thing and call for a thorough independent public inquiry. To not do so, will be extremely costly.

Tangi Bell

Anola

The will to work on water woes

Re: Rivers should not function as sewer pipes (Think Tank, May 24)

“And why the heck isn’t every citizen in Winnipeg up in arms about it?” asks Erna Buffie. She’s absolutely right.

I would suggest that few things in this world are more important to our species than the air we breathe and the water we drink. Imagine if our drinking water came from Lake Winnipeg, instead of Shoal Lake. Would the issue be more likely to get attention? What’s needed is the political will, however unpopular it is with voters.

I was just a kid when Duff Roblin was the visionary behind the floodway, but my understanding is that it was not the popular position at the time. His legacy is remembered every time we face the threat of flood risk.

Kudos to Coun. Brian Mayes for for appearing to be the lone voice on this.

The federal government announced the establishment of the Canada Water Agency as a standalone federal entity on Oct. 16, 2024, and it is headquartered in Winnipeg. How nice — let’s showcase what we have in our own backyard.

Terry Toews

Winnipeg

Support for Marin’s Principle

Re: Helping those who were harmed (Think Tank, May 23)

We were so pleased to read Jon Gerrard’s op-ed. He is correct when he writes that neurodivergent students “were traumatized by their school experience and are functionally illiterate as a result.” It is also not acceptable that those who have been harmed are called “casualties” and nothing has been done to address the mistakes made in education.

A wrong has occurred and we agree with Jon when he writes,”It is a general principle that when a ‘wrong’ has occurred, and harm has been done … that those who were harmed should be helped and compensated.”

We support Marin’s Principle and encourage all MLAs to turn Marin’s Principle into a bill and pass it.

Let’s avoid the need for a class-action lawsuit and support Marin’s Principle.

Bruce and Pat Macdonald

Winnipeg

Poor parking plan

So while Winnipeg Transit considers spending $10.5 million to make riding a bus easier by implementing a system to accept debit and credit cards for fare payments, the Winnipeg Parking Authority won’t spend $3.6 million to do the same.

I am one of the 20 per cent of downtown parking users who doesn’t or cannot use their app, as I do not have a cellphone, and if I did, the only reason I would need more than a cheap flip phone would be for the City’s parking app. It’s not really worth the extra monthly expense for a smartphone rental just to occasionally park downtown.

Do Transit and the Parking Authority not answer to the same bosses -— the people of Winnipeg through city council? Isn’t it the job of council to ensure fair and equitable treatment and access for all Winnipeggers and visitors to our fair City? If Transit can do that, certainly the Parking Authority can as well, and council could (and should) direct it.

Or maybe they are all working this together — maybe it’s all just a ploy to get more people onto buses.

Bob Martin

Winnipeg