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in si de ha lto n. co m O ak vi lle B ea ve r | T hu rs da y, N ov em be r 1, 20 18 | 12 Guitar, Piano, Drums, Vocal & Ukulele Guitar Drums, & Ukulele MUSIC LESSONS Sign up toda y... • No RegistRat ioN Fees • No CoNtRaC ts • PRIVATE - oN e oN oNe • all ages wel Come • all levels av ailable, R to advaNC ed 905.257.3110 • theguitarworldoakville.com 380 Dundas St. E. at trafalgar Road in longo's Plaza 905.257.3110905.257.3110 • theguitarworldoakville.comtheguitarworldoakville.com Expert Service and World Class Repairs all levels aall levels a begibegiNNeR to advaNCNCNCed HUGE SELECTION OF GUITARS, AMPS, UKULELES, ACCESSO RIES & MORE! MuSical inStruMEntS MuSic lESSonS Some Burlington and Oakville residents have said they've received nothing but radio silence after repeatedly trying to reach their local MPP since she was elected in June. But according to Oak- ville North-Burlington MPP Effie Triantafilo- poulos, who responded to a media inquiry, she stat- ed she and her office have been reachable via her website, email, phone and social media. "It's really surprising news to hear that. We as a government understand the importance of cus- tomer service. It is the fo- cus of Premier (Doug) Ford and our government and my focus as well," Triantafilopoulos said. "I'm disappointed to hear that there were indi- viduals that might have tried contacting us and were unsuccessful and I encourage them to reach out to me by email or phone or if they want to arrange a meeting in per- son; I'm happy to do it." Eighteen-year-old Burlington resident Ai- man Akmal said she has been trying to get in touch with her local MPP since August but hasn't heard back. In her second year of an international rela- tions program at the Uni- versity of Toronto, A9kmal said she's wor- ried about potential cuts to the Ontario Student Assistance Program (OSAP) and has wanted to speak to Triantafilo- poulos. Premier Doug Ford hasn't yet commented publicly on the status of the OSAP free tuition program for post-second- ary students, originally brought in by the previ- ous Liberal provincial government. "If cuts to OSAP will be made, I'm a student and I need to plan in advance," said Akmal, to make sure she'd still be able to con- tinue her university stud- ies. The Burlington teen noted in addition to first emailing Triantafilopou- los back in August, she followed up in September on Twitter and by email again on Oct. 1 - she said she hasn't received a re- sponse to her concerns. Akmal said she also wanted to know if the MPP had plans to open a local constituency office. "It's frustrating be- cause I don't know where else to go, especially con- cerning potential cuts to OSAP. She's my first point of contact to the government as a whole and she's supposed to re- present Oakville North- Burlington and her con- stituents," she added. "It's one thing not to have a constituency of- fice open, it's another to not tell constituents when we can expect an of- fice and not follow back on emails." The Beaver learned the Oakville North-Bur- lington MPP has had a temporary office open for the past "week and a half to two weeks" at 2525 Old Bronte Rd., unit 215, in Oakville. Its hours of op- eration are Monday-Fri- day, 9 a.m.-5 p.m. - Trian- tafilopoulos noted she was also willing to meet with some residents out- side of those hours. When asked if she or her office have let her constituents know of the opening of the temporary space, Triantafilopoulos responded, "We have been reachable since Day 1 by email on our website, which is also on my Twit- ter and Facebook pages. Folks have been able to actively reach us. And I've been meeting with constituents since Day 1." Even though she hadn't had a physical space for residents to vis- it, Triantafilopoulos said she's been meeting with constituents in her riding at coffee shops and even visiting some with mobil- ity issues in their homes. "My staff and I have been on the phones or re- sponding to emails when- ever someone has a con- cern or request," she ex- plained. "I'd certainly never en- courage anyone to come from Burlington and Oakville to head to our ministry office in down- town Toronto to meet with me. I'll continue to meet with people in cof- fee shops or in their homes." To compare, Burling- ton MPP Jane McKenna, Milton MPP Parm Gill and Oakville MPP Ste- phen Crawford have had constituency offices open since June 22 -- Gill and Crawford moved to new locations in Milton and Oakville on Oct. 1 and 27, respectively. When asked why there was a delay in opening her constituency office, Triantafilopoulos said it was due to the unusual 'RADIO SILENCE' FOR SOME RESIDENTS SAYING THEY'VE BEEN UNABLE TO REACH LOCAL MPP JOHN BKILA jbkila@metroland.com NEWS PROVINCIAL REP SAYS SHE WAS 'SURPRISED' AND 'DISAPPOINTED' UPON HEARING THE NEWS See RESIDENTS, page 36 www.oakvillesantaclausparade.ca MEETING FOR ALL SANTA'S ELVES Anyone interested in volunteering for the 70th annual Oakville Santa Claus Parade please come to a meeting (volunteers need to be 14 years or older) Wednesday, November 7th 6:30 pm registration, 7:00 pm start own Hall, 1225 Trafalgar Road, Oakville rafalgar Rd. @ White Oaks Blvd.) in the South Atrium AdulT ANd STudeNT vOluNTeeRS Needed fOR: Wednesday 6:30 pm registration, 7:00 pm start Town Hall, 1 (Trafalgar Rd. @ White Oaks Blvd.) Traffic & Parade Marshalling Costumed Characters and escorts (students will receive volunteer hours) Parade takes place on Saturday, November 17th at 9:00 am