Calling the Fight HST movement a fight to stand up for democracy, former B.C. premier Bill Vander Zalm told a crowd of about 50 supporters Saturday night, “We’re winning.
“I’ve never heard the word democracy as much as we are now. There’s never been more talk about democracy since Confederation,” he said during a stop at the Zocalo Café in Courtenay.
The stop was part of a fundraising kickoff to the Recall Comox Valley campaign. Campaign organizers are applying today to Elections B.C. to initiate recall efforts against Comox Valley Liberal MLA Don McRae.
“If we lose this fight, you can forget about direct democracy. You can forget about politicians changing things. We’ve got to finish the job,” he added.
Vander Zalm noted those hardest hit by the impact of the HST are the lower and middle class.
“For the average person, (the HST) is a big hit ... the rich become more rich, and everyone in between slowly disappears,” he said.
Despite some backlash, Vander Zalm added recalls are a must in a democracy, and told supporters to continue their work.
Vander Zalm credited the change from an initiative vote — where 50 per cent of all registered voters in B.C. must pass a vote — to a simple majority for the upcoming HST referendum by Premier Gordon Campbell a good start, but hesitated to say the campaign will be easy.
“I predict, there will be the vote in September, and we will win the vote. A day after, there will be action from the big business lobby saying you can’t do this because legislation says you must have a super majority. They will take it up in court, and we don’t have the money for that. We can’t allow this to happen. That’s why recalls are a must.”
Kathryn Askew, who is spearheading the local Fight HST campaign, along with a team of canvassers, must collect 19,346 signatures of Comox Valley voters in 60 days for the campaign to succeed.
During a question-and-answer period, a supporter asked if there might be a possibility of seeing the HST petition going to the legislature for a free vote.
“If any Liberals voted against it, it might be the first time in this province we might see a revolution,” answered Vander Zalm.
“The tax is what started us in this campaign, but it’s turned into a fight for democracy.
“We live in a dictatorship ... there’s one vote that counts in the end, and that’s the premier’s,” he added.
Askew added the Comox Valley campaign has about 70 canvassers, and is looking for more volunteers. For more information about Recall Comox Valley, contact Askew at kataskew@telus.net.
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