ROTHENBURGER: Good voices being lost at Kamloops City council table

When he finally let it be known a few days ago that he was retiring from council, he gave as part of his reason that people shouldn’t stay in one political job for more than two or three terms — it shouldn’t become a career, he said. Now there’s a man after my own heart.

I’ve been saying the same thing for a long time, and so have others. Politicians go into public service with good intentions and big plans but the longer they stay, the more comfortable they get.

As they settle into the big swivel chair, they become reluctant to risk losing it. For some, holding on to that chair becomes more important than holding on to the things that got them there. A big reason I’ve liked Sinclair and Walsh is their ethics. That’s what guides them.

They aren’t always right (keep in mind that being wrong means their opinions are different than mine) but they do it for the right reasons. For example, Walsh departed from the mainstream on COVID when anyone refusing vaccination was at risk of ostracization.

While I strongly disagreed with him on that — we had some interesting exchanges on the subject — I admired the political and personal risks he took to stick to his guns. One thing I’ve agreed with him on is his search for practical solutions to homelessness and addictions, a quest that has been unrequited.

Swimming against the mainstream of conservative, traditional thinking by other councillors, he’s made no progress on that file but he’s tried hard. As recently as this week he was brushed off when he gave it another try.

Neither does he shy away from taking on administration when he feels it’s necessary. He’s sometimes been regarded by staff and fellow councillors as a bit of a loner. The thing about Denis Walsh is that what you see is what you get.

In private conversation, away from the spotlight, as they say, he’s exactly the same as when all the attention is on him. He has no discernible ego. In its place is a self-deprecating sense of humour. Though he’s been told from time to time he should run for mayor, he says he’s never considered himself “mayor material.”

Although he and Sinclair haven’t always hit it off (he once described their council relationship as “disconnected”), she carries similar genes when it comes to ethics and, like Walsh, she’s never been in it for the money or the perks.

Her strength has been in promoting solutions to social issues, and on occasion hasn’t been afraid to go outside the box — as in her conviction that parking should be sacrificed for more housing. With Mayor Ken Christian stepping aside, and incumbent councillors Dieter Dudy, Sadie Hunter and Arjun Singh among those trying to replace him, at least three of those four won’t be around either when the gavel is banged on the new edition of council but the impact of that is a topic for another day.

I’m sure, based on the slate of newcomers in the race, some good people will be elected Oct. 15 but they’ll face a high bar to match Sinclair and Walsh. City council needs more like them, not fewer.

Mel Rothenburger is a former mayor of Kamloops and a retired newspaper editor. He is a regular contributor to CFJC Today, publishes the ArmchairMayor.ca opinion website, and is a director on the Thompson-Nicola Regional District board. He can be reached at mrothenburger@armchairmayor.ca.

by Mel Rothenburger

ROTHENBURGER: Good voices being lost at Kamloops City council table

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