Dear Flamborough Residents & Mr. Ted McMeekin,

My name is Donna Olivieri. I am the active secretary for the Committee to Free Flamborough. I volunteered one year ago, (with the persuasion of Dave Braden & Marg McCarthy) to represent the citizens of this town who were unhappy with the forced amalgamation of the Town of Flamborough into The City of Hamilton.

Unlike Ted McMeekin, I am not a political person. As a matter of fact, the roles of mother, wife and landlord come the most natural to me.
However, on a cool spring evening, at a meeting in Millgrove, where hundreds of voices of Flamborough residents rang loudly and angrily in the air, my hand went up as a volunteer.
A small sheet of paper with signatures on it; that was the beginning of our committee. We would team up, evolve (as all committees do) and work diligently for the restoration of the Town of Flamborough.
"Your silence is your consent" became my personal motto.

Ted, you and I have been friendly co-habitants of this town for many years. Since the days of Chapters in Waterdown. We have laughed and enjoyed a serious conversation on many an occasion.

However, that being said, you stepped forward from the position of Flamborough's Mayor and announced your candidacy for the Liberal party in this riding several years ago.

You both said, and wrote, on many occasions that you would work for de-amalgamation from Hamilton. And Ted, you work for us, the residents of Flamborough, not for Mr. Gerretsen, not for Dalton McGuinty. And not for Larry DiIanni. Your answers should come straight as an arrow when asked a question by any resident. Your constituents have a right to open government. Honest answers. This very issue was at the heart of the election and I would hazard a guess, was likely the very issue that accounted for your win.

Working behind the scenes isn't the job you were hired to do, Ted. Pre-election promises followed by the election win, constitutes a contract between yourself and your constituents. Not selective parts of this contract, but the whole. That same contract allowed you the honour of serving these people. And if you or I do not carry through on a promised agreement, we are often asked to step away from the job. Not surprisingly.

No other career in this country would allow such a breach of contract with no accountability. Dalton McGuinty is setting records in that department. Perhaps it is time for Canadians to set their own records with new laws for empeachment?

If no citizen stands up and calls for accountability, what government do we really have? Canadians are famous for their apathy. Politicians can count on that quality and then thrive on it.

Please, Ted, when referring to CFF, do so with respect. It is democracy itself that allows us to voice our opinion in a letter or in public debate, and to send in petitions and to vote out people who do not keep their promises to us. As past opposition and now elected representative, you have personally seen both sides of this procedure. Please respect the fact that this committee has worked a full year with our only payment being the satisfaction of fighting for democracy.
The very democracy we all treasure, is slipping from our hands. So slowly, it goes unnoticed.

And until this town fires the Committee to Free Flamborough and its volunteer members, we will continue to represent those 12,000+ signatures on that petition. And whether you are happy with our committee or not, the Liberal Party answer to Flamborough's petition should have come to CFF and then should have immediately been shared with all the citizens of this town.
"Working behind the scenes" is not a term that one embraces with confidence.

Please, Flamborough, don't believe that the mere action of putting a checkmark beside a name in a poll is democracy. If those elected officials don't follow through with their promises, what democracy do you really have?

Our Committee is not made up of the most politically schooled people in Canada but, I can promise you this, it is made up of people with good hearts and good intentions. People willing to dig deep into their pockets and their timetable to stand up for something they believe is worthwhile. I hope the community sees this and is grateful. I know I am grateful to each and everyone of them. Past and present members of CFF. Canadians who still believe that things can be changed if only we keep on fighting.

Most Sincerely,
Donna Olivieri