To the editor:
No, what happened to the NDP in 2001 will not happen to the B.C. Liberals in 2013.
There are 85 electoral constituencies in the province. Sixty-eight of these constituencies will remain the same as they are now in the May 14 election.
The other 17 constituencies are called swing ridings and the taxpayers in these constituencies are not married to the B.C. Liberals or the NDP. These swing ridings will be the constituencies that decide what government will rule British Columbia for the next four years.
At the present time, 10 of these swing ridings are held by the B.C. Liberals, six by the NDP, and one by an Independent MLA.
Questions taxpayers have to ask themselves is that today B.C. has the second highest credit rating in Canada next to Alberta. Can an NDP government hold on to it?
B.C. today is a "have" province. Can an NDP government hold on to it?
Today, I receive a regular paycheque every second Friday from my employer. Most employers do not support NDP governments. Will I get a layoff slip from my employer if the NDP forms government?
Is it important to put in an NDP government in for four years when once again they would be voted out in 2017?
Some say Premier Christy Clark will not win her riding. Does not matter who forms government, Christy Clark will still win Vancouver-Point Grey.
Voters in Vancouver-Point Grey have two choices in voting for Christy Clark – an MLA who is the premier of the province or an MLA who is the leader of the Opposition. The other choice of voting for an NDP MLA leaves the riding represented by a backbencher either way whether government or opposition.
We always hear the phrase the B.C. Liberals are supported by big business and the NDP are supported by unions. The taxpayer must ask, “Who gives me a pay cheque?” Business does; unions do not.
Joe Sawchuk
Duncan