Restoring the Voice of Albertans

Posted by Tim Osborne on September 2, 2011 | 5 comments

One of the major reasons that I made the decision to seek the Alberta Party nomination was my belief that voice of average Albertans is being lost in the political process. We need to find ways to ensure that citizens have an opportunity to express their viewpoints and have ready access to their MLAs.

Over the past number of months, we have seen several of the candidates for the PC Leadership speak out against funding decisions and legislation which they had previously voted in favour of. Perhaps they had spoken out against these decisions behind closed doors and their vote represented an act of caucus solidarity. While caucus solidarity may at times be necessary in the democratic process, it becomes a problem when solidarity is replaced by groupthink and the suppression of ideas.

It would seem that over the past number of years, the ability of MLAs to represent the views of their constituents has been greatly diminished. One need only look to the examples of Guy Boutilier and Raj Sherman to see what happens when an MLA speaks out in the best interest of their constituents. Simply put, this has to change.

Taken directly from the Government of Alberta website, the role of an MLA is described as follows:

First and foremost, MLAs represent their constituents, and to represent means, above all, to communicate. In the Assembly Chamber MLAs earn their living with their voices, making the views of their constituents known by introducing bills and debating and discussing concerns with other Members. To represent you in the Assembly, your MLA communicates your concerns to other elected Members and to various government ministries.

The Alberta Party has laid out guidelines for their MLAs that will allow for free votes, thereby enabling MLAs to truly represent the best interest of their constituency. For reference, here is the relevant portion of the Alberta Party MLA Guidelines:

An Alberta Party MLA may vote for or against any resolution that is under consideration provided that such MLA has engaged her constituents in a conversation about the issue, considered the issue, and has concluded that passing the resolution is in the best interest of Albertans; and provide an explanation of the rationale for casting her vote in a particular manner on major issues on their website.

I  believe that it is the role of an elected official to take the time to hear  what his or her constituents have to say about an issue and then make decisions that reflect the input of the constituents and the best interest of the province.  An MLA who listens only to those who share his or her views, is simply not doing the job for which they were elected.

MLAs must find ways to better engage their constituents on an ongoing basis. Whether that be through town hall meetings, door knocking outside of the campaign period or utilizing social media tools to their fullest extent, we need to do a better job of presenting Albertans with opportunities to be heard and respected.

In the next election, four new MLAs will be added to the Legislature. Let’s all do our part to ensure that these MLAs have the freedom to represent their constituents and make their voices heard.