Street issues, crime big theme in CFJC mayoral debate

“I hear a lot of things like the province will only let us do this, we have to push them, we have to tell them. I’m trying to say enough of this,” said one audience member. “What is your best out-of-the-box idea going forward to keep this local. This is our problem. There’s a problem in Prince George, there’s a problem in Kelowna. Who cares? We’ve got a problem here. What can we do here?”

Many of the questions from the audience focused on how we get the city back to being a safe and welcoming community. Most of the candidates responded there is no one solution that will eliminate all the problems.

“It’s not right to say council hasn’t been working on this issue,” said mayoral candidate Arjun Singh, a current city councillor. “This issue is very challenging — compounded by COVID, compounded by wildfires. I know you’re shaking your head, but I’m telling you that’s the truth.”

Mayoral candidate Sadie Hunter added, “The answer to how to solve it is not straight forward. If someone does give you a platitude and say they have a straight forward answer with a stroke of a pen — build a facility, move people out to wherever, then they’re lying to you.”

“To wish it away overnight impossible,” noted mayoral candidate Dieter Dudy. “I think we need complex care facilities again. We need to give these people the proper type of facility where they can get the help they need.”

Ray Dhaliwal noted, “I can ask those tough questions, I will be bringing that to the table. What we’re doing defintely is not working. Everyone’s doing the same thing and that’s a cop out for me. We can do better.”

Hunter’s comment subtly targeted fellow mayoral candidate Reid Hamer-Jackson – who’s been pushing for a recovery facility in Rayleigh to help people get better.

“Why do you think it’s going to cost more money to have people off drugs than it is on drugs downtown,” said Hamer-Jackson. “We need to start spending money on the people and to give them services, so they can get better. They can go out to these places, they can stay there for six months or a year. When they get better, then they can come back into town.”

Dudy thinks Kamloops needs a complex care facility to deal with extensive mental health issues in the community, while Dhaliwal says he will ask the tough questions of the provincial and federal governments.

Another topic on Tuesday was the severe doctor shortage in Kamloops — with about 40,000 residents without a physician — and how the city can work to attract more.

“If we went to our development community and spoke to the people that were going to be putting up these 150-unit residences or 150 office-type buildings. We should be discussing with them to place a small clinic within that building on the ground floor that can house anywhere from 10 to 15 doctors,” said Dudy.

Dhaliwal added, “Create a medical building and allow the doctors to do what they do. They went to doctor’s school, medical school, to learn how to help people, not to run a business.”

The current council has pushed to provide financial incentives to doctors, but city staff has said it’s against provincial law.

The five candidates have 10 more days of campaign before voters go to the polls on Oct. 15.

You can watch the full mayoral forum on CFJC Today’s Facebook page.

by Chad Klassen

Street issues, crime big theme in CFJC mayoral debate

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