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ET i I a SA ITER. IEEE » i 2- PORT PERRY STAR - Tuesday, October 29, 1991 "Scugog's Community Newspaper of Choice" Aldred says, "voter apathy a curse" By Scott Anderson There is a fundamental prob- lem with voters and the voting process, says the moderator for the recent all-candidates de- bate. "Voter apathy is a curse upon personal freedom. Voter ignor- ance seems to stem from a lack of understanding as to how the system really works or doesn't work. Voter squeals are heard locally at tax paying time," says Joel Aldred. Mr. Aldred says that as a re- sult of this attitude, voter par- A. OPPERS LTD. e Quality Replacement and New Construction Windows e Expert Custom Installation or Cash and Carry e 15 years Experience Call Us For A Free Estimate Or AVALSTA ® JU SY ale) Vice lola) (416) 985-4910 REICH Nola alk] ((=T=1 0 nlel a 8 =1-Yd aV/ ticipation in the municipal elec- tion on November 12 will be poor. This apathy alarms Mr. Al- dred as he believes municipal politics to be the most impor- tant level of public representa- tionin Canada. He says munici- pal politics is the most important as it is "personal pol- itics as opposed to party poli- tics." "The most personal of all lev- els of government in this coun- try is municipal government, and yet, we will be lucky if even 35 per cent of the electorate get out to vote on election day," he says. As a result of this lack of par- ticipation, Mr. Aldred says a "minority government" will be voted in. He pointed to his riding, Ward 3, as an example. He says on the Island there are approxi- mately 1,800 eligible voters, but only approximately one- third of them will come out on election day to cast their votes. "It could be that 200 votes for one candidate will elect a coun- cillor to represent up to 3,000 residents, including children," he says. Mr. Aldred says there is no reason why people cannot find the time vote in the election. He points to the two advanced polls before the election, as well as mor at Laurentian Bank In the race for the best rates, Laurentian Bank wins hands down. We'll better the best posted interest rates at the five major banks* by 2% on Guaranteed Investment Certificates and RRSP's for terms of 1 year, 18 months, and 2 years, and by %% for terms of 3 to 5 years. What's more, we'll GUARANTEE this rate for up to 30 days... so drop by today and beat the rate race! This bonus offer applies to direct business only. cannot be combined with any other offer, and is subject to certain other terms and conditions. Offer expires November 16. 1991. *Bank of Montreal, Royal Bank. CIBC, Scotiabank and Toronto-Dominjon. For more information. contact Laurentian Bank of Canada. 165 Queen Street. Port Perry. 985-8435 LAURENTIAN BANK OF CANADA SINCE 1846 a I AAA AIL aes a ans a a SAK the long hours and the many polls open on election day. This unwillingness to vote, and to be a part of the political process worries Mr. Aldred. He "fears a drift towards a consti- tutional dictatorship." "If you lose your freedom to vote and the freedom of choice, you're marching steps towards a dictatorship," he says. Part of the reason for this ap- athy, he says, is that the voters are just unsure of how the whole political system works. "Voter ignorance seems to stem from a lack of understand- ing as to how the system really works, or doesn't work," he says. Mr. Aldred says the problem lies in the fact that the schools are not teaching the impor- tance of politics anymore. He points to the past when part of the school curriculum taught politics and the voting process, but he says today they don't do that. This, he says, is hurting the political process. He also blames the public in general who he says no longer make the effort to stay in- Clarification An article in the October 22 issue of the Port Perry Star im- plied that the residents of Heath Crescent were unhappy with the actions taken by Moth- er Jackson's Open Kitchen re- garding the noise situation. In fact they are pleased with the progress which has occurred since the formation of the Ad Hoc Committee. It was also stated that the residents were not happy with the "decorative wooden fence" constructed by the company. It should have read "The resi- dents did not ask for the chain fence to be replaced with a deco- rative wooden fence. This was a company plan that we complied with." A spokesperson said they are in fact happy with it. The Star regrets any confu- sion this may have caused. PARTS DERSON CHEVROLET-OLDSMOBILE LTD. formed in the issues of the com- munity. As a result of the anticipated poor turnout, it is up to the can- didates to do their best to get the voters out to the polls. He says it is up to the politicians to get the voters to vote because they have committed them- selves to the race. "I suggest to all candidates it is your fiduciary responsibility to work as hard as you can to get out the vote," he says. He also called upon every- body who attended the all- candidates meeting to "do your part to spark interest in this critically important function of democracy." Jackpot From Page 1 Mrs. Marcotte says it "felt good" to win the prize. She said she had been playing the lot- tery since it began, purchasing up to 20 tickets at a time. Re- cently that number was cut back to five, however. Ironically, the winning ticket was one of only two tickets Mrs. Marcotte purchased for the draw from Port Stop Variety in Port Perry. When asked if the money will come in handy, Mr. Marcotte replied "you ought to believe it." He is a truck driver on disabili- ty leave and unable to return to work. Mrs. Marcotte works as a cook at Crandell's Riverboat in Port Perry. She intends to keep working there. PORT PERRY Open 9 AM to 10 PM [ / Rh 7 DAYS a WEEK py 985-8401 268 Queen Street, Port Perry