The ballot for the riding of West Vancouver - Sunshine Coast - Sea to Sky Country just got a bit more crowded as a fifth candidate has joined the race.
Allan Holt, a 63-year-old businessman from Halfmoon Bay, confirmed his candidacy this week for the Western Block Party.
Holt has no previous political experience, but said he is offering up an alternative to the mainstream parties.
"Nobody speaks for me. That's the bottom line and 'me' is a big term," Holt said. "I have no interest in these candidates or what they say or do. I listen to all the promises and that upsets me more than anything. The threats, and I consider them to be threats, when the parties are saying if you don't vote for me, guess what you're going to get?"
Born in St. John, N.B., Holt grew up in southern Ontario and moved to B.C. in 1969. He has been living on the Sunshine Coast for the past 16 years.
"I plan to bring some common sense to this campaign," he said, adding he plans to get his message out through the all-candidates' meetings and through social networking. "I think the most important government we have is at the municipal level. We should be paying all our taxes to our municipalities, who in turn will pay a portion to the provincial and then in turn to the federal government. Why should we always have to stand with our hand out from a government that is 3,000 miles away? I have never understood that about our political system. This is not the country I grew up in."
According to their website, the basic policy of the Western Block Party is to achieve independence for Western Canada after referenda in each of the four Western provinces. They seek to establish a new nation with four basic qualities: a constitutional right to direct democracy -recall, referendum and initiative - applicable to all laws and measures; a bicameral (two-house) legislature, with representation by region in the upper house and representation by population (one person, one vote) in the lower house; two levels of government, national and municipal; a referendum on the constitution after its drafting by a constituent assembly and an independent judiciary beholden to a constitution based on the principles of liberty and personal responsibility.
"I don't have all the solutions, but there are many problems out there," Holt said. "I want to listen and discuss the issues. I don't care whether you vote for me or not, but let your common sense guide you and be sure that you are engaged and that you are aware of the issues."
The other four candidates in the riding include: incumbent member of Parliament, Conservative John Weston, Liberal Dan Veniez, New Democrat Terry Platt and Green Brennan Wauters.
