Personally I think the Citizens' Assembly has a unique
opportunity to change our present unfair system of electing a
government and I hope that you as a group find the wisdom, the will
and the courage to propose a system to elect a government that will
be as democratic as possible and will give the people some kind of
ultimate say about the business of governing this province.
I came to this beautiful country from Switzerland and I am truly
grateful for the generous living this province has provided me
with. I adore this land very much, but there was always
one thing that at times frustrated me, our political system that
allows a large minority to form a majority government at the
expense of smaller parties whose views are totally absent in the
government.
What I really would like to see is a government that gets
elected and functions like the Swiss government.
This would encourage fairness of equal representation, diversity in
government and ultimately a willingness to compromise. It would
make the decision making process more people oriented.
My proposal would be the following:
A) The main house: Members
are elected from each region (population ratio). Each
voter from each region votes for the total number of
representatives from that region. Members with the most
vote are elected
B) The regional representation
house: Each region is entitled to two members
regardless of how many people live in that region.
Members elected by the voters of each region.
C) A governing body (like today's
cabinet): Members elected by the main house from
members of the two houses. (representation from each
party would be approximately the same as its share in the
house)
D) The premier would be appointed by
the governing body at a rotational basis for the period of one
year.
E) All government business could be
subject to a referendum vote if there is sufficient support to hold
one.
F) People have the possibility for a
people's initiative if a person or group can find sufficient
support.
These are my ideas. I sincerely hope that the citizens' assembly
has a very close look at the Swiss system. Should BC
end up with some similar system it would make this province to be
the envy of the world.