The leader of the official opposition has added his voice to the chorus demanding to know what happened to promised consultation in the removal of land title records from Kamloops.
Andrew Wilkinson wonders how much the province is playing politics on this issue noting the city is represented by two BC Liberal MLAs.
“Well Kamloops, where I grew up, has been the administrative hub of the interior for over a century. The Land Titles Office is a long standing institution in Kamloops just like the old forestry offices were and like the Royal Inland Hospital it is what makes British Columbia tick. The fact the NDP would walk in and just say it is over without talking to anyone involved is a bit of a surprise.”
Wilkinson says we have seen this pattern before.
“Well we have also seen this with the caribou that they are now finally touring the province after having already cut a deal with the federal government and some of the First Nations. They are now doing community consultations after the fact. They seem to be getting good at this in making high handed decisions and then turning around and saying we need to talk to the folks who are involved. That is exactly what is going on in Kamloops with the Land Title Office.”
Wilkinson says the decision to remove the records is another indicator of a provincial government paying lip service to reconciliation efforts while not consulting Kamloops area First Nations impacted by the move.
The decision to remove the land title office records was made last October but only because public last month when the news leaked out.
To date promised consultations are still missing in action and some of the records have already been moved.