Dear Editor:
Just a few short days into the official election period, the “Billion Dollar Man” a.k.a. NDP leader Adrian Dix, has not had the courage to show British Columbians his party’s platform, yet he has promised to add nearly $1.4 billion in new spending to the provincial government with little reference as to how he is going to pay for it.
To date, the free-spending and unaccountable Adrian Dix has promised to spend $310 million on forestry, $225 million on film subsidies, $485 million for grants and training, $300 million for education and $40 million on new ferry subsidies.
This behaviour should not come as a shock, as it is exactly what the NDP did in the 1990s and what the NDP did in Manitoba this week.
The last time the NDP formed government in British Columbia, Adrian Dix was in the office of the Minister of Finance and they raised the sales tax after their party had run a campaign on a “fully costed” platform that excluded a sales tax hike.
It’s time for Adrian Dix and his disciples to come clean with the voters of British Columbia, and to this I issue a direct challenge to my NDP opponent, Norm Macdonald.
I am calling on Mr. Macdonald to do the honest and responsible thing and have the courage to demand that his leader, on behalf of the constituents of Columbia River-Revelstoke, release his party’s full platform with a complete financial plan. This will enable constituents to have the comparative information that they need to make informed decisions before they go to the election booth.
This challenge speaks to the democratic responsibility that the NDP have to the people in our riding.
Mr. Macdonald consistently tells voters that he believes in democratic principles and rights the people have, so it is now time for him to put his money where his mouth is.
The arrogance of Adrian Dix and his party has gone on for far too long, and the people of Columbia River-Revelstoke have the right to know what they are being asked to vote on.
Doug Clovechok
BC Liberal party candidate
Columbia River – Revelstoke riding