PROTESTS PLANNED AT POLITICIANS’ OFFICES

I want to let the people of Cape Breton know why they will soon see protests in front of politicians’ offices.

We have been fighting for over two decades for fairness from our provincial government when it comes to the unfair distribution of the yearly equalization transfer. This funding is coming to the province for a specific purpose, one the provincial government is ignoring.

We are the taxpayers and we will not be ignored by politicians any longer. It is time to sit down and address this issue in full view of the public so there can be no misunderstandings. We will not tolerate politicians telling us one thing to get elected and then being told by party leaders to ignore the Nova Scotians for Equalization Fairness (NSEF) group, once elected.

If we must we will protest at every opportunity, to show the people that these politicians have been told not to respond to the NSEF by party leaders. So why are we electing them in the first place as it is just a huge waste of money to even go through the process election after election.

Cape Breton Island is an island that is in trouble economically and that needs to be addressed. We are much more than just a source of revenue for the province because of our dire situation but we refuse to be kept in a perpetual state of decline just to ensure this province receives over $2 billion per year from the federal government that is designed for ALL Nova Scotians to live equally with the rest of Canadians.

Here we are in Cape Breton with unemployment in the double digits, property and commercial taxation rates through the roof, massive poverty rates, etc., and then the politicians who we elect ignore us when we want to discuss these issues.

We just cannot allow that to happen any further. So we wanted to take this opportunity to let the residents and citizens of Cape Breton know why they will see protestors on the streets in front of these elected officials’ offices soon. We appreciate you blowing your horns and supporting our efforts because we are doing this for you, the people of this spectacular island who deserve to have a much better political representation within the province.

Dr. Rev. Albert Maroun (On behalf of the Nova Scotians for Equalization Fairness) Sydney