2003-08-23

Leadership is a tricky thing. Was the captain of the Titanic a good leader for appearing calm and reassuring while the ship sank? Or was he a poor leader for allowing the ship to get underway with insufficient lifeboats, for not holding lifeboat drills, for allowing the ship to strike the iceberg, and for not being better organized when disaster happened?

Eves definitely displays the "calm and reassuring" leadership traits but what about the rest? Are the opposition leaders really going to discourage investment in Ontario by pointing out that the power problems should have been avoided? If anything, it's unreliable power that will do that. The opposition's job is to question the government precisely so problems can be avoided. If the Tories had been paying attention, we wouldn't be in this mess.

Howard Hampton has been tireless in pushing the publicpower message. He's presented a clear and practical agenda for restoring Ontario's public infrastructure. And unlike Eves, the NDP's plans don't include selling off public assets to "balance" the budget.

It's not like this is the first preventable disaster this year. We're still recovering from the SARS outbreak when we again find Eves begging Ottawa for relief money. It does all come down to leadership. Do we want four more years of crisis, where leadership means being reassuring at press conferences while you explain that it wasn't your fault? Or do we want the type of leadership that plans ahead? Do we want more of the disasters that have plagued Ontario since Eves took over or do we expect our leaders to present practical solutions?

Gary Dale, Provincial NDP Candidate
Scarborough East