聽 聽 聽 聽 聽 聽 No one is untouched by the attack on 鈥渙ur values as Saskatchewan people鈥� that is the recent Saskatchewan government budget, said Linda Osachoff, moderator of the End of the Line town hall meeting held in Kamsack on April 13.
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 鈥淲e are not just taxpayers; we are citizens,鈥� said Osachoff , who operates a bed-and-breakfast business with her husband on their farm north of Mikado and is an employee of the credit union and a former employee of the health care system.
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 Osachoff stressed that the meeting was not a political forum as the implications of the budget supersedes political parties. She said that Terry Dennis, the Canora-Pelly 小蓝视频, had been invited to attend the meeting, but because he was unable to attend, notes from the meeting would be forwarded to him.
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 As a government back-bencher, Dennis has limited control of the budget process, but he has a responsibility to listen to concerns of residents.
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 The meeting, held in the Ukrainian Catholic Hall in Kamsack, attracted residents of both Kamsack and Canora areas, and began with a presentation by Cheryl Stadnichuk of Regina who spoke from a CUPE-issued (Canadian Union of Public Employees) slide show dealing with the recent provincial budget, which she said, was 鈥渙ne of the most severe budgets in the history of the province.
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 The 鈥渃ruel, mean budget鈥� attacks public services, while distributes income to the wealthy, Stadnichuk said, explaining that the budget inflicts massive cuts to the public sector bodies, includes mean-spirited cuts to public services that the vulnerable rely on including STC service and libraries; has massive cuts to all government ministries except social services and highway; demands wage cuts for public sector workers and results in direct job losses.
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 The budget provides tax cuts for corporations; has personal income tax cuts which benefit mostly the wealthy; shifts to consumption taxes and the PST increase hurts low income persons more, and rests on an expectation that the private sector will provide more services.
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 Stadnichuk said that the government鈥檚 claim that the deficit forced the budget is erroneous because, as a percentage of GDP, the deficit is smaller than during the Devine government. She said that that the current deficit of $685 million is the sixth deficit of the Wall government and that government revenues and spending doubled during Premier Brad Wall鈥檚 time in office.
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 She ridiculed the government鈥檚 choice of a 鈥渢rickle-down economic theory,鈥� which has been soundly debunked when implemented in other jurisdictions in the past, and was critical of the decision to shut down STC services which would result in 224 jobs lost and 253 communities left without public transportation, personal and business shipping, hitting the rural and northern communities hard.
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 Stadnichuk was critical of the government鈥檚 decision to dismantle public libraries and included a quote from Don Morgan, minister of education, who has said that 鈥淪askatchewan has too many libraries.鈥�
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 She mentioned the cuts to school divisions, municipalities, universities, higher care home fees and health care and said that community-based organizations have had their funding frozen, special needs in daycare has been eliminated, community pastures are 小蓝视频 phased out and the selling off of 900 grain cars ends the Saskatchewan Grain Car Corporation.
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 There is no need for this austerity, she said, urging people to support campaigns to save the libraries and the STC, and to pressure their elected representatives and send letters to the 小蓝视频s.
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 鈥淲e have never seen so much action before,鈥� she said in regards to citizens鈥� response to the budget.
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 Donna Krawetz of Kamsack, a member of CUPE, discussed the budget鈥檚 impact on health care, including the cutting of key care programs such as assistance for hearing aids and chiropractic and podiatry services.
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 The closure of STC has a huge impact on health care, she said, mentioning that many patients fighting cancer use STC services to get to medical appointments in the cities.
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 Calling herself a 鈥渃ranky old lady,鈥� Cecelia Cazakoff of Kamsack, a retired school teacher and chair of the Kamsack Public Library board, said that although she does not consider herself an expert, she knows 鈥渨hen something is fair and just and when something is just plain wrong.鈥�
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 Instrumental in having a petition circulated in Kamsack with regards to objections to the STC service, Cazakoff spoke on that topic as well as to the cuts to libraries.
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 Because all of Saskatchewan can be considered as rural, Cazakoff said that special considerations are needed when it comes to transportation.
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 鈥淲hen I saw the latest provincial budget, I can honestly say I went into shock,鈥� she said. 鈥淚 saw the dissolution of decades of social progress that had made Saskatchewan unique; a model society for others to emulate.
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 鈥淚 am here because I am extremely concerned, even fearful, about the consequences of the government鈥檚 budgetary decisions鈥hat seem to have been made in frantic haste and lack of foresight.鈥�
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 Critical of the discontinuation of STC services, or 鈥渢he throwing of STC under the bus and driving over it several times,鈥� Cazakoff said that the day before this meeting she had watched a 小蓝视频 from Parliament Hill where Malala Yousafzai, a 19-year-old social activist, spoke of harsh injustices endured by hundreds of thousands of other girls and women throughout the world and of a Muslim girl that had been removed from a refugee camp in Somalia and taken to a town where she was to be forced to marry an elderly man whom she did not know.
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 鈥淢alala said that the desperate teenager managed to get enough money from a sympathizer to take a bus back to the safety of the refugee camp,鈥� Cazakoff said, adding that she had been impressed with the girl鈥檚 courage, was thankful that there was a bus to carry the desperate young girl to a safe haven, and was struck that 鈥渢hey have buses in Somalia!
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 鈥淪omalia, a third-world country, war torn; in many ways primitive and certainly not the safest place on this planet, but they have public transportation: busses.鈥�
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 It was never intended that the STC service should be financially self-sufficient, she said. It was and is an essential public service to be subsidized by the public purse.
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 Research shows that public transit systems, whether urban or rural, rarely operate without government support, she said. The cost to governments for maintaining a province-wide public transportation system is offset by significant social and economic benefits for the citizens. These benefits are then reflected back to the provincial social and economic well-小蓝视频 as a whole.
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 Public transport ensures that all members of society are able to travel, not just those with driving licences and access to a vehicle, but groups such as the young, the old, the people with modest means, those with medical conditions and disabilities and even people banned from driving for whatever reason.
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 Public transportation opens to its users the possibility to meet and visit other people, to see new places and to enrich their lives with fresh experiences. It enables visitors to travel within the province.
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 Public transportation enables people to care for themselves, she said. They don鈥檛 have to depend on others or to feel as if they are inconveniencing others when they need to go for appointments and health care.
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 Shutting down the STC literally immobilizes the people and businesses of this province and the adverse effects of this will be felt by both rural and urban centres. Small towns will atrophy and die.
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 She encouraged persons to sign copies of the petition that is 小蓝视频 circulated in objection to the planned STC closure.
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 Turing her attention to the cuts for libraries, Cazakoff outlined how inter-branch book loans are made and said that the cuts will have 鈥渁 horrific impact on library services.鈥�
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 Public libraries were created so that all members of a society would have access to reading and other communication materials, she said. 鈥淩emember, at one time things such as schools and reading materials were available only to the wealthy and privileged.鈥�
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 Cazakoff highlighted items in the Kamsack Library鈥檚 annual report that prove its value to the community and said she regretted not getting into 鈥渢he education thing鈥� because that would take a whole evening to discuss.
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 鈥淪uffice to say that these budget cuts will take education back at least 30 years,鈥� she said.
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 Several members of the audience raised issues which basically echoed the concerns of the speakers and it was said that protests on the budget are to be held at the Legislative building in Regina and people indicated that they would be willing to board a bus taking them to the city so that they could participate.
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 Information on how to make one鈥檚 voice heard about the provincial budget can be found on the Facebook sites Save STC and Stop the Cuts. 聽
