Siebring disingenuous about neighbourhood associations
In the recent announcement of his mayoral candidacy, Al Siebring is disingenuous in stating that neighbourhood associations “claim to represent the entire neighbourhood”.
In fact, none of the neighbourhood, stewardship and community groups of North Cowichan claim to uniformly represent their constituents and understand well the diversity of the voices of their members.
On the other hand, neighbourhood, stewardship and community groups actually can reflect a great many of the voices of their members and are probably the best option for doing so.
Through social interactions, the members naturally learn of, and monitor, community concerns and desires on an ongoing and continuous basis. Members are well connected and attentive to how friends and neighbours are thinking about municipal issues, issues which are the subject of discussions much more often than one might imagine.
Social media also helps us keep a finger on the community pulse. The Quamichan Lake Neighbourhood Association, for example, has 290 members on its Facebook discussion group, (which is often focused on municipal issues). The Maple Bay Neighbour to Neighbour group, has a further 1,300 members, with often overlapping discussions of municipal matters. The Somenos Marsh Wildlife Society, which has existed for over 30 years, has over 1,000 followers on its Facebook page. Sahtlam Neighbour to Neighbour has a highly subscribed Facebook presence as well as an active website.
Though they may not speak for all, it would be a mistake to underestimate the degree to which these groups can be in tune with and represent their areas of interest. Though these groups are obviously full of people with diverse opinions and interests, they are in a position to understand the complexity of many issues that are subject to municipal governance and to represent that complexity in municipal processes.
If Mr. Siebring is concerned about these groups not representing everyone, he should recall that in the last elections only about 13 per cent of North Cowichan voters actually voted for him.
Our neighbourhood, stewardship and community groups are well intentioned and are a force for good in the municipality. They bring citizens more significantly into the day to day acts of governance, aiding members in understanding municipal issues and in communicating their views. They also bring local knowledge and expertise to the municipal process and work collaboratively with elected officials and professional staff for the benefit of all.
It is a shame if Mr. Siebring is willing to damage all of that merely as a tool to achieve his personal political ambitions.
The Directors
Cowichan Communities Coalition