School Closures indicate NDP ignorance

Dear editor

Since the Weyburn election I’ve been amazed by the NDP’s lack of understanding about why people in this province are getting so finished with them. However, here we are in times of billion dollar surplus’ and yet at least half the population of the province are being punished. It appears all but NDP power elite recognize how their actions are destroying this wonderful province. Just let me illustrate.

For several weeks now we are hearing about pending school closures. That act alone is the most destructive action that can be imposed unto a community. On top of that destructive act, there is no evidence to indicate that the act has any benefits. There is more evidence to indicate that school closure does not save the system any money, as in the past most school closures have resulted in a steady increase in tax rates. Those same closures can be shown to deteriorate quality of education, as well a quality of life for all involved. It drives away families resulting in more rapid population declines. It reduces the ability of communities to regenerate themselves.
Next we see a constant decline in the availability of health services. Those in charge argue that they cannot find people to fill the necessary jobs. However, minor investigation indicates that in fact the problem is more related to the unwillingness of the system to hire full time workers. Yes they do have trouble filling part time jobs, but they don’t even consider full time jobs unless they be administrative in nature. We even see where they remove full time lab positions only because they don’t like how well certain facilities were being utilized.

We see the constant removal of public service jobs from our areas. Power, telephone, gas personal all belonging to public crowns are becoming fewer and fewer, resulting in continually increasing dangerous situations for our rural residents. At the same time our property is expected to pay for more and more of the services enjoyed by our large center cousins. Plus our ability to create the wealth that is enhanced in those urban centers is under more and more threat of being totally removed. (Talk about killing the goose that lays the golden egg) These are all actions that have been totally controlled by this government. But wait there is still more.


This is the same government that has acted to effectively remove local input and autonomy. They have created huge government bodies to administer those service removals from us. These large administrative structures are very effective in gobbling up large percentages of funds in health and education. Those are very, very large sums of monies that never reach the end user of the health and education. For example, our current school board is the result of the amalgamation of some 7.5 division boards. They subjected us to a 2 mill increase in taxes their first year in existence and at the end of the year indicate that they are some 5 million dollars in debt. That debt is interesting because at least 5 of the amalgamated divisions operated on a yearly basis of 5 to 6 million. Thus the so called efficiency of amalgamating was about equal to the operation of an individual division. The problem being that the so called efficiency is in reverse.

So what would be the advantage of amalgamating except that now local autonomy is even less of a reality than existed under previous division boards. Now there is no accountability except towards the provincial government. Thus there is no doubt that we are now seeing a dying government ensuring that it imposes the most destruction possible on its rural residents. The evidence is more than overwhelming. The list of such actions can be added to with little effort. Our lack of cell phone service, our denial of high speed Internet service, the double billing for services we get very little of. We could also speak of the denial of a multimillion dollar development none of which would require government dollars, or the hundreds of thousands of dollars to force our community into court with regards to our non supply of chlorinated water to residents who’ve expressed to the minister their desire to supply their own water. My list has only begun but I think I’ve clearly illustrated why this government should understand why so many people in this province want them gone. I do believe that Tommy would be at the head of the political movement to get rid of this government. It seems to me that his history was one attacking the very ills I’ve illustrated, but now is been imposed on us by his successors. The facts that this government is accelerating its destructive desires on such a large portion of its population is undeniable and I had hoped that some of the political whiz kids within the governing party would be suggesting a different course of action. Instead we seem to be getting an acceleration of the destruction. Who would have believed such folly would have continued even leading up to an obvious election.

Thank you
Michael D. Klein