Bars and cinemas reopen to full capacity, but vax passes still required
Whatever else may be going on in the world right now, there is good news at least here in Quebec with the provincial government’s ongoing plan to loosen Covid restrictions – beginning last Monday.
Since last Monday, bars, which had been closed since the beginning of the pandemic, are finally reopening, even though dancing and karaoke remain forbidden for now.
Full operating capacity
According to the revised rules, theatres and events venues that can accommodate up to 10,000 people, including the Bell Centre in Montreal, can now reopen to 100 per cent capacity.
Since last Monday morning, cinemas and movie theatres have also been allowed to operate to 100 per cent capacity, and the same applies to casinos. Bars, restaurants and casinos can now stay open until 1 am, although food and drink service must end at midnight.
But at the same time, the use of vaccine passports remains mandatory for admission to restaurants, bars, show venues and film theatres. For work places which are gradually reopening, the use of face masks is no longer mandatory in the work place.
Sports events resume
Sports tournaments and competitions are being allowed to resume in municipal facilities as well as in schools. However, the use of face masks is still being recommended for youths 13 years of age and older.
As of last Monday, cinemas and movie theatres can operate to 100 per cent capacity
Senior citizens living in CHLSDs and similar facilities for the retired may now gather in groups of up to 10 at tables in dining rooms. But at the same time, the government is recommending that visits be limited to a maximum of 10 persons.
To paraphrase a well-traveled truth that if mistakes of the past are ignored, they return with a wallop far stronger than their original impact, creating precedents that could be abused by future generations.
Prime Minister Trudeau’s revocation of the Emergencies Act this past week, before it barely became operative, leaves many questions unanswered. Where is all this heading?
A bit of history, many questions. In Canada, The War Measures Act of 1914, temporarily shifted power from parliament to executive branch of government, giving Prime Minister and Cabinet arbitrary jurisdiction in adopting emergency measures in times of war, invasion, or ‘apprehended insurrection’. Understandably, the act was put into force during two world wars, but not so clearly understood is the reason why it was also invoked in the 1970 October Crisis, or more to the point – why it was passed, and then quickly revoked, last week, in response to the freedom convoy that hit Ottawa late January 2022, disrupting the city, according to some, for three weeks.
Potential and actual abuses of emergency powers were exposed in the 1970s, following Pierre Elliott Trudeau’s controversial invocation of the act in 1970, a widely-criticized move, prompting comprehensive constitutional revisions that brought all emergency powers within constitutional provisions. When war, rebellions, and threats to peace and order erupt, most constitutional governments suspend usual procedures to deal with regime-threatening conflicts.
This is what Canada would have had to abide for at least a month, before the Prime Minister made an about face. Nonetheless, the situation regarding emergency powers is noteworthy.
Canada has faced substantive threats through most of its history. Nineteenth-Century rebellions were put down by expanding national governments. Twentieth-Century real emergencies were declared in two World Wars. Suspicious invocation of the act in 1970 engendered criticism of the government’s use of emergency powers and led to reform efforts – The Constitution Act of 1982. In recent weeks, ‘Emergency’ – referring to commonsense approaches to crisis resolution – has escalated to heated debate over appropriate use of martial law.
Martial law is regarded as suspect by constitutional scholars who condemn its peacetime use because it rests upon no settled principles, entirely arbitrary in its application. It’s not law, indulged rather than allowed, unjustified in peacetime, the illegitimate cousin of military law. A notion of legality inherited by modernday Canada. However, Canada’s martial law is now reduced to matters of executive declaration.
A good look at how the so-called trucker convoy emergency was defined and handled by government/political leaders provokes pertinent questions. The critical question, the answer to which is essential to the preservation of the rights of all Canadians, is: Did the 2022 Canadian government overreact and then overreach/overact by ramming through the House of Commons the subsequently-suspended Emergencies Act? The proposed legislation became law with the support of only two-offive sitting political entities in the House – the Liberals and the NDP in a rather tight vote of 185 to 151.
Agreed, on extreme occasions, every prime minister/head of government must be ready to risk going beyond the strict lines of law, when the preservation of public security requires it. As it turns out, Prime Minister Trudeau declared the equivalent of martial law, claiming the presence of a local insurrection. If so, why didn’t Federal Public Security Minister Marco Mendocino act earlier, from the start? Why didn’t the Prime Minister meet with the convoy leaders, at their request? His response: ”Why should I meet with you? You’re racist, misogynist, and terrorist. And if that’s not enough, he painted all non-vaxxers and protest supporters with the same brush. Why did Trudeau in the House of Commons accuse an opposition Jewish Member of Parliament of supporting terrorists who carried Swastika flags (one flag, to be exact) when she said the Prime Minister was abusing his power.
Was the government’s handling of the freedom convoy an anachronistic understanding of the Constitution of Canada on the Prime Minister’s part? Yes, the Constitution explicitly allows local legislatures to ask federal protection against domestic violence. But when is martial law, or its equivalent, presumably allowed or justified? Unquestionably, to stop armed insurrection too strong for civil authority.
Competent authorities must determine what degree of force the crisis demands and if the government must resort to wartime conditions to maintain itself to overcome unlawful opposition. After much deliberation – was the public safety really at stake during the truckers’ demonstration? Was the emergency real? Why did Ottawa Chief of Police Peter Sloly reach a “mutually agreeable separation” with the Ottawa Police Services board amid heavy criticism for not being tough enough with truckers and protesters? Why would Canadians be subjected to privacy invasions legalized by Emergencies Act provisions allowing government to freeze their bank accounts?
It was reported by some non-compliant-to-government media, that the bank account of a Canadian single mom was frozen because she donated $50 to the truckers through the GoFund campaign, donating when it was still legal. This isolated but potentially widespread act-of-invasion-of-privacy was morally doubtful at best and potentially criminal at worst, neither of which is acceptable in a supposedly free society such as Canada claims to be.
Although The War Measures Act gave sweeping powers to the executive, it stipulated that to exercise these powers there ‘‘shall be conclusive evidence that war, invasion, or insurrection, real or apprehended, exists.” The executive was also explicitly given the power to censor media; arrest, detain or exclude persons; control ports and transportation; control commerce; and appropriate, control, forfeit, and dispose of property.
The question now is: Why did the Canadian Civil Liberties Association question Trudeau for what it considered overreach and violation of constitutional rights? Why were some protesters roughed up by police (video evidence)? Why were convoy leaders denied bail after being charged with unsubstantiated crimes? Why does the Canadian population have to rely on non-Mainstream Media outlets to challenge Trudeau’s questionable attempts to arbitrarily oppress all Canadians with The Emergencies Act, while most Mainstream Media, sang the same song, uncritically, without any healthy skepticism, continually reflects what appears to be an imbedded approach to reporting on the happenings in the nation’s capital? Furthermore, why did the NDP support the Liberals by voting with them to pass the Act, exhibiting no respect for those of the party who have been fighting for human-rights-for-all since the 1930s.
No mainstream media pointed to problems arising from provisions of the Act. Since the defense of liberty and property of individuals rests with the provinces and not with the national government, the key constitutional question raised by many experts is whether the powers seized are within the range of federal power. This may be behind Alberta’s intent to challenge the Act if it became operative. Are these extraordinary times which necessitate extraordinary measures? Peaceful, although boisterous, truckers? Extraordinary times? A real head-scratcher!
It’s unthinkable that the Emergencies Act could have led to dictatorship and oppression, even in short spurts of time in 2022, yet there’s clear evidence that democracy was in temporary perilous suspension under an authoritarian government. Is this what our forefathers fought for and died to avoid?
It’s unclear if an emergency actually existed. Was there a real emergency, or was it fabricated by authoritarian forces who wanted to shackle everyone with the yoke of submission-to-authority. “You either do as we tell you, or you will have your rights curtailed. If you don’t submit (to vaccines). You will lose your rights.”
The one sacred thing in democracy is freedom from government oppression. There is protection under Canadian Constitutional Law that the governing class governs from the consent of the people. The people don’t exist because of the government; government exists because of the people. Democracy must prevail.
Chomedey residents seething over snow-cluttered streets and unplowed sidewalks
In spite of claims over the past few winters by Laval officials that they’ve managed to resolve many of the city’s long-standing snow removal problems, homeowners on certain key residenial streets in Chomedey are complaining once again about uncleared sidewalks and other examples of what they say is mismanaged snow removal in Laval.
The City of Laval claims to have beefed up its snow removal strategy with, among other things, a smartphone app that allows residents to track snow removal operations in real-time.
As well, a major change was announced last spring to the winter parking regulations on residential streets. As of this winter, car owners are no longer obliged to park on alternating sides during the winter months.
New parking rules this winter
Chomedey resident Andreas Pantelis stands on the edge of his property on Bennett Ave. last Sunday His left-hand points to where the sidewalk normally should be, but where the Bombardiers mini-plows hadn’t passed for at least a week, he maintained. (Photo: Martin C. Barry, Newsfirst Multimedia)
According to a press release on the new parking strategy circulated by the city last May, car owners are now free to park on either side of the street during the winter, but must still “alternate” when snow removal operations start.
When city officials made the announcement last spring, they estimated that the number of days requiring alternance would drop from 150 to 36 per year. Prior to the change, vehicles had to be moved from one side of the street to the other every weekday from Oct. 1 to April 30.
In addition to this, for a number of years now the City of Laval has been encouraging its residents to download and use its “Info-Stationnement” smartphone app (available for iPhones through Apple’s App Store, and for Android phones through Google Play), in order to better understand the street parking situation during the winter months.
City recommends app use
A press release issued by the city in October last year advised residents not to judge the state of snow removal ops only from what they see on the street, but to rely on the information provided by the app, text messages sent out by the city, or by calling the 3-1-1 public works phone service.
With all that being said, it means little to some residents on certain streets in Chomedey, where, they claim, the snow removal – and especially the de-icing and plowing of sidewalks – was especially lamentable in recent weeks, after Laval got whacked by several winter storms.
“Ten days,” Andreas Pantelis of Chomedey’s Bennett Ave. called out to a reporter last Sunday afternoon from the front steps of his home, noting the number of days the sidewalk on his street hadn’t been cleared, he said. This in spite of at least two ice and snow storms that roared through Laval over the past two weeks or so.
Can’t get past snow banks
Pantelis, who suffers from a heart condition that prevents him from engaging in strenuous exercise like snow shovelling, said he and his wife couldn’t get their car our of their driveway because of the enormous mounds of snow piled on the unplowed sidewalk in front of their home.
Added to this, he said, Bennett St., like so many other streets in this part of Chomedey, is narrow. As such, the snow banks piled on each side, that the city had yet to pick up, created a large-impassible channel for cars to navigate.
A few streets west of Bennett, on Clarendon Ave. near the corner of Notre-Dame Blvd. where Nick Furfaro has his home, the problem was the same: As of last Sunday, the sidewalk that passes in front of his and all the other homes on the street hadn’t been plowed by the mini-Bombardier for around a week.
The view along de Cherbourg Ave. in Chomedey last Sunday, where the city had posted signs advising residents not to park because of imminent snow removal operations. (Photo: Martin C. Barry, Newsfirst Multimedia)
Many senior citizens impacted
A helluva situation in a neighbourhood where a very large percentage of the residents are senior citizens, who would have trouble enough navigating their way in the dead of winter along icy sidewalks, even under the best of circumstances.
“Firstly, the snow has not been removed as it used to be,” Furfaro said. “But you can’t access the sidewalks, either. You’ve got to walk on the street because the sidewalks haven’t been cleared. The snow removal from the previous heavy snowfall hasn’t been removed, and the one that just happened added to the volume.”
On Thursday morning last week, according to Furfaro, residents of Clarendon found themselves being serenaded by the sound of a passing tow truck’s loud horn, warning to move their cars because snow-blowing was about to start.
Snow-removal signs not put up
“But there were no signs put on the snow banks like they used to,” he said. “And the last time they removed snow they did not put signs warning the citizens that there would be snow removal. So, we have no way of knowing when it is they’re going to be removing snow.”
And then there is the parking situation. Despite the city’s insistence that it cleared up whatever confusion there had previously been over the winter parking regulations, it would seem that not even City of Laval employees are entirely clear on the new concept.
Furfaro said that last week, he saw a parking officer with the City of Laval going around ticketing cars parked on a side of Clarendon where, according to his reading of the regulations, parking is supposed to be permitted during the winter months.
Confusion over parking rules
“One of my neighbours was about to get a ticket, and the ticket was placed on his car and [the ticket officer] was going onto the next car. I said to him you cannot give a ticket when we are parked on the right side. We are allowed to park on our side unless there are snow removal notices.
Nick Furfaro of Clarendon Ave. in Chomedey is seen here last Sunday standing on the east side of the street with the area behind him being the sidewalk which for the past week at least had not been plowed. (Photo: Martin C. Barry, Newsfirst Multimedia)
“He said ‘No, you have it wrong. He said whenever there’s more than 5 centimetres of snow you can’t park.’ I said that’s not what the sign says. The sign says parking is allowed except when there is snow removal operations.”
Furfaro said the officer relented and he saw him removing the tickets he’d already place on some some cars. As for the city’s parking app, Furfaro said on Sunday that during the previous week the app highlighted his side of Clarendon in red, indicating no parking was allowed. “And yet, there’s been no snow removal,” he added.
Where is there to park?
Chomedey city councillor for Chomedey Aglaia Revelakis, who sits with the opposition Action Laval party, said in an interview that there is still a lot of confusion over the parking app. “People don’t know where to park anymore,” she said, noting that the city increased allotments for snow removal in recent annual budgets, “yet we don’t see much improvement.”
Chomedey city councillor Aglaia Revelakis says there is still a lot of confusion over the parking app
While suggesting that the city’s public works department may have been caught off-guard with the latest storms, she continued, “There is no abrasive on the sidewalks. It’s very slippery and you cannot walk. My phone has been ringing endlessly this week. For residents, it’s dangerous out there, especially for the elderly who have to go out on errands.”
Mystery of the unplowed sidewalks
The Laval News reached out to Sainte-Dorothée councillor Ray Khalil, who is the executive-committee member responsible for snow removal ops. After getting an update on the overall snow removal operations, he maintained last Sunday that 70 per cent of Laval’s streets had been cleared.
Although Khalil had no specific information for Chomedey, he insisted that “in the next two days probably everything will be done.” While he was at a loss to explain why the sidewalks on Bennett, Clarendon, Chambord, Cherbourg and other nearby streets went unplowed all this time, Khalil said the City of Laval had allotted a considerable amount in a recent budget to upgrade its fleet of Bombardier sidewalk plows.
The current issue of the Laval News volume 30-08 published March 2nd, 2022. Covering Laval local news, politics, sports and our new section Mature Life. (Click on the image to read the paper.)
Front page of the Laval News, March 2nd, 2022 issue.
The City of Laval said on Tuesday that snow removal operations are continuing at an “intensive” pace, after nearly two weeks of non-stop work because of a succession of snow and ice storm events over that time-frame.
According to the city’s public work department, another 10 centimetres of snow fell on Laval in the last 18 or so hours, for a total of 38 centimetres since Feb. 18.
Since the city clears snow from its streets on a priority basis, roadways where there are schools, as well as boulevards and other major arteries, are being plowed and cleared of snow before crews get around to residential streets.
Here’s the public works department’s advice to vehicle owners to help optimize the efficiency of snow removal operations:
The city says that “alternative-side” street parking regulations are in effect during snow removal ops, sometimes for several days.
They recommend parking in your own driveway when snow ops are scheduled to take place. Be sure to park 30 centimetres from the curb to leave room for the sidewalk plow.
Be sure to shovel snow onto your property, rather than on the street or sidewalk.
On garbage and recycling pickup days, leave your bins on the edge of your property, rather than on the street or the sidewalk.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced on Wednesday afternoon that Canada will be imposing additional sanctions against Russia, following its invasion of Ukraine.
“Canada condemns in the strongest possible terms Russia’s egregious attack on Ukraine,” said Trudeau. “Canada is taking strong action to stand up for what is right and protect the rights and freedoms of the Ukrainian people.
Flanked by several of his cabinet ministers, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced new sanctions on Wednesday against Russia following its invasion of Ukraine.
“Let me be clear: there will be serious consequences for Russia’s actions. Together with our allies and partners, we will continue to take decisive action to support the sovereignty, territorial integrity, and independence of Ukraine and by extension, democratic principles, freedom, and human rights around the world.”
“Today, we woke up to a changed world,” said Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland, whose personal roots are Ukrainian. “Russia has launched a brutal and unprovoked attack on the sovereignty of Ukraine – a country of more than 40 million people who have sought nothing but peace and freedom.
“Canada understands what is at stake. We know that the people of Ukraine, in fighting for their lives and their sovereignty, are fighting for us, too. They are fighting for democracy, and we stand with them.”
The new sanctions on Russia, which build on measures first announced on February 22, include:
Imposing restrictions on 58 additional Russian individuals and entities, including banks, financial elites and their families;
Sanctioning members of the Russian Security Council, including the Defence Minister, the Finance Minister, and the Justice Minister;
Imposing restrictions on four Ukrainian individuals for their collaboration with Russia to destabilize Ukraine; and
Restricting exports to Russia by halting new export permit applications and cancelling valid export permits, with a limited number of exceptions for critical medical supply chains.
The Prime Minister also announced that Canada will take additional and immediate measures to support Ukrainians and people residing in Ukraine, and to make it easier and faster for Canadian citizens, permanent residents, and their accompanying immediate family members to return to Canada. These new measures include:
Establishing a dedicated service channel for Ukraine enquiries on immigration. This will be available for clients both in Canada and abroad at 613-321-4243, with collect calls accepted. In addition, clients can now add the keyword “Ukraine2022” in their email enquiry, which will prioritize their email;
Urgent processing of travel documents, including issuing single-journey travel documents for immediate family members of Canadian citizens and permanent residents who do not have valid passports;
Ensuring that Ukrainians currently in Canada are able to extend their stay or work longer in Canada by prioritizing the renewal of work and study permits;
Issuing open work permits to Ukrainian visitors, workers, and students who are currently in Canada and cannot go home; and
Waiving fees for travel and immigration documents, such as for Canadian passports, permanent resident travel documents, proofs of citizenship, visitor visas and work and study permits.
While saying that a Parliamentary investigation into the causes and consequences of Freedom Convoy 2022 will begin in the next 60 days, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced Wednesday afternoon that the Liberal government is lifting the Emergencies Act, which was invoked to deal with the tumult that reigned in the heart of the nation’s capital for more than three weeks.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced the lifting of the Emergencies Act Wednesday, with an inquiry into the Freedom Convoy to begin within 60 days.
“The situation is no longer an emergency,” Trudeau told journalists, while adding, “We are confident that existing laws and bylaws are now sufficient to keep people safe.”
Canada’s Governor General, Mary Simon, signed an official assent on Wednesday, which brought the state of emergency to an end.
The Prime Minister said the decision to revoke the act came after the government consulted with police authorities across the country, who gave assurances they could deal with any further incidents with existing law enforcement tools and provisions found in the Criminal Code of Canada.
Investigators from the Laval Police Department have opened an inquiry into what appears to have been a fatal domestic dispute at a home in Laval’s Duvernay district.
The son of a couple in their seventies got in touch with the LPD last Saturday evening shortly after 7:30 p.m. after he found the bodies of his parents in their residence on Blois Blvd. near Trois-Rivières Ave.
“When the police arrived on the scene, they found the bodies of the two people unconscious,” said LPD media relations officer Stéphanie Beshara. “According to the information we have at the moment, it could be a murder followed by a suicide.”
Although the identities of the victims, a 71-year-old woman and her 75-year-old spouse, were not immediately disclosed by the LPD, a Montreal Francophone daily has identified the male spouse as Joao Marques.
“These were a couple of people without any history with the police,” added Beshara. “An investigation is underway to better understand the causes and circumstances in this dossier.”
A security perimeter was set up around the house. It was the second apparent murder-suicide in Quebec during the previous 24 hours. On Friday the week before, a 62-year-old man and a 59-year-old woman were found dead in Dunham in the Eastern Townships under similar circumstances.
Gunshots fired on a residence in Sainte-Dorothée
The Laval region’s 9-1-1 operators received several calls during the early morning hours on Thursday last week regarding the sound of gunshots heard in the vicinity of des Azalées St. in Sainte-Dorothée.
Laval Police Dept. officers responding to the scene found bullet impact marks on a front window and on stone work at a residence on that street.
According to the LPD, no one living in the home was injured. A security perimeter was established around the building and an investigation is now underway.
Some recent Laval Fire Department calls
Feb. 20 – 00:46 AM · Building fire on Maurice-Cullen St. in Laval’s Saint-Vincent-de-Paul sector. Commercial building. Smoke visible. Code was 10-07, meaning intervention necessary.
Feb. 8 – 4:01 PM · Building on fire on du Ruisseau St. in Laval’s Sainte-Rose sector. One-storey residential building. Flames visible. Code was 10-07, meaning intervention necessary.
LFD was advising motorists to avoid these streets: Terrasse Dufferin / Archambault. Blvd.
Feb. 8 – 7:05 PM · Building fire on des Laurentides Blvd. in Laval’s Auteuil sector. Two storey, multi-unit residential building. Smoke visible. Code was 10-07, meaning intervention necessary. LFD was advising motorists to avoid these streets: Savard / Sagard.
Multi-group gathering in Quebec City to focus on the living conditions of seniors
An umbrella group representing the interests of senior citizens across Quebec says it will be holding a general assembly in Quebec City in early May to discuss major issues affecting the province’s retirees – with a special focus on their living conditions.
“We would like to see representatives of civil society and Quebec experts position themselves with regard to the 38 solutions we have developed, in order to perfect them, prioritize them and put forward the best ways to age better in Quebec,” said Rose-Mary Thonney, president of the Quebec Association of Retirees in the Public and Parapublic Sectors (AQRP), one of the groups that plans to participate in the Coalition for the Dignity of Seniors’ estates general on May 3.
“Together, we want to develop a joint declaration, which will help to outline what we see as living conditions that are truly adapted to the needs and desires of seniors, because living is also about getting older,” added Lise Lapointe, president of the Association des retraités et retraitées de l’éducation et autres services publics du Québec (AREQ). The 38 solutions proposed by the coalition are grouped under four main themes: health, finance, seniors’ rights and citizen participation.
Health
The coalition wants to put an end to the hospital-centered vision of Quebec’s health system, which it says “goes against the will of the majority who want to stay at home as long as possible. Inevitably, budgets for home care and services will have to be adjusted to this desire. Greater investments will also need to be made in prevention and in promoting healthy lifestyles.”
“The way care is provided must be rethought in order to promote greater autonomy for seniors in order to allow them to find, relearn, recover or maintain the skills and functions necessary to carry out their daily activities,” said Andrée Lamontagne, president of the Regroupement interprofessionnel des intervenantes retraitées des services de santé (RIIRS).
Finance
The coalition maintains that financial and tax aspects are fundamental to ensuring well-being and ageing with dignity. The enhancement of the Guaranteed Income Supplement and the Old Age Security Pension, the tax credit for medical expenses and the reduction of the eligibility threshold from 3 per cent to 1.5 per cent for those aged 65 and over are among the 38 solutions proposed by the coalition.
Pierre Lynch, president of the Association québécoise de défense des droits des personnes retraités et préretraités (AQDR), cited statistics on the incomes of Quebec seniors to reinforce the coalition’s case. In April 2021, he noted, theInstitut de recherche et d’informations socioéconomiques (IRIS) established that the average sustainable individual income in Quebec is $28,000. Yet according to statistics currently available, he added, nearly 33 per cent of Quebec seniors have incomes of less than $20,000, which the coalition regards as unacceptable.
Advocacy
The coalition believes the rights of seniors need to be better protected, since the pandemic has been a major awakening, although unacceptable situations existed long before it. With more than a quarter of Quebec’s population expected to be over the age of 65 within the next 15 years, the coalition believes that it is imperative to create a position of seniors’ protector, independent of the health network and the government.
“We would like to see representatives of civil society and Quebec experts position themselves with regard to the 38 solutions we have developed”
“It’s no longer the time to think, it’s the time to act,” said Laurent Aubin, president of the Association québécoise des directeurs et directeurs d’établissement d’enseignement retraités (AQDER). “So, it is very quickly that our society must adapt to this new demographic reality. We must ensure that seniors age with dignity and that their rights are respected in all our institutions.”
Citizen participation
The coalition says that even though society’s treatment of seniors has come under the spotlight during the pandemic, seniors don’t need to be treated like children and must be encouraged to come out of their isolation. The group says seniors can and should be part of public policy thinking at all levels.
While taking into account immigrant seniors and the LGBTQ+ community, the Coalition for the Dignity of Seniors proposes that projects be quickly put in place to allow seniors to express themselves and integrate into their community.
“Citizen participation is an essential part of the lives of seniors who, for the vast majority, are autonomous, socially active, economically independent and actively contribute to society,” said Mireille Beaulac, president of the Alliance des associations des retraités (AAR).
Bus drivers, management have been in negotiations for more than a year
Two Action Laval city council members are raising questions about the intense negotiations that have been underway since last year between the Société de transport de Laval and the union representing the transit agency’s bus drivers.
Laval city councillor for Chomedey Aglaia Revelakis. (Photo: Martin C. Barry, Newsfirst Multimedia)
“Following the announcement of arbitration being rejected by the drivers, it would seem that management has lost control in the negotiations and relations with the drivers have become toxic,” Chomedey city councillor Aglaia Revelakis and Saint-Bruno city councillor David De Cotis said in a statement.
Get serious, they say
While noting that negotiations of the collective agreement have been dragging on for more than a year and the ensuing conflict is interfering with transit services, they suggested the administration of the STL needs to acknowledge the seriousness of the situation and take appropriate action.
“The mayor chose five elected members from his party to represent the municipal council on the board of directors of the STL,” said De Cotis, who used to be president of the transit authority.
‘They should be making sure that the taxes of citizens are being put to their best use,’ Revelakis says regarding the STL’s governing board
Want board to act
“The general manager no longer seems to be in control of negotiations. So, maybe the time has come for the board to act and change who is sitting around the negotiations table. They should be doing more than just collecting their salaries.”
Action Laval city councillor for Saint-Bruno David De Cotis. (Photo: Martin C. Barry, Newsfirst Multimedia)
While pointing out that the City of Laval provides more than $93 million annually to the STL, Action Laval said the councillors who sit on the STL board should be representing the interests of the city, and by extension those of the residents, and therefore should be actively participating in all decisions.
Using taxes properly
“They should be making sure that the taxes of citizens are being put to their best use,” said Revelakis. “Their role is to supervise the management at the STL. They are not there to be told what to do, but to provide guidance.”
In its statement, Action Laval added, “Drivers are fundamental to the mission of the STL. Their role is essential to providing service to users. Without drivers, the STL couldn’t provide any service. The board of directors must ensure that management remains centered on the mission of the STL, and not on their own comfort.”
