By Kevin Francis. I’m gonna do something every politician in this city should do. I’m gonna be completely honest here. I wasn’t planning to run at all during this election, the last election and the run up to it left a bad taste in my mouth. Sneaky and deceitful tactics from one side coupled with lack of cooperation from the other gave us the present council.
I was also planning to bypass the mayoral vote on my ballot since the choices offered were simple: I could vote CRMG, ex-CRMG or CRMG founder. Not much of a choice. I decided to spoil my ballot in protest because voting, even when the choices are horrible, matters.
Then this whole incident with political prospect Artur Gryz happened.
Whether or not Artur should have taken the picture is irrelevant. What’s important here is city hall’s reaction to somebody posting posters of a dedicated guy trying to improve Mission. If a current CRMG member was involved in this attack they should come forward and admit it if they hope to be a council representative in Mission.
What also made me cringe was the lack of condemnation from the CRMG. I didn’t see any strong condemnation from the mayor or the ex MLA.
The biggest loss for Mission however, was that Artur decided to not run.
This outrageous attack has spooked some great people from running, not just Artur, people that selflessly try to improve, in their own way, life for Mission residents.
I could not just stand by and let bullies set a new low standard for municipal politics in Mission, so at the last minute, I threw my hat in.
I’m the underdog in this race, I face experienced politicians with money who are backed by people with even deeper pockets. But I just can’t stand bullies.
What I hope this nomination achieves is that it stirs up the normally apathetic voters of Mission (last election turnout was 30%, so only about 1/6 of residents decided to elect the CRMG) and that citizens start seeing through the fear and bullying.
I therefore ask you to vote, not necessarily for me, but vote nonetheless.
Send a clear message to prospective politicians that we will not accept this type of behaviour in Mission. Bring a friend to vote. Let’s double the voter turnout and elect people worthy of your vote.
Municipal politics affect you the most. If we can’t mobilize as citizens for 15 minutes every few years in order to choose the men and women who represent us, then we are a sorry bunch and deserve to be led by whomever manages to convince a small minority of people to vote for them.
I’m betting we won’t let that happen. Will you join me?