The other day I was covering BC NDP leader John Horgan’s visit to the Galloway Lumber Company in Jaffray.
While waiting outside the company office for him to conclude a meeting with lumber executives Charles (Bud) Nelson, his brother Jay and others, I decided it would be a good time to get some stock images of the lumber yard.
I went around snapping whatever photos I found interesting; huge stacks of processed lumber bound for the housing industry, other stacks bound for the oil and gas industry, raw unprocessed logs bound for yet to be determined industries and big lumbering machines picking up and dropping logs at different locals.
Suddenly I felt something on my neck.
I brushed it off and didn’t think much of it until I intuitively looked down and realized that my pants were crawling with ants. There were ants in my pants. I’d been standing on an anthill for what must have been a good minute and the ants were furious. They were running hither and thither all up and down my shoes and most likely had designs of invading my pant legs.
I immediately sprung into action and affected an ants-in-my-pants-dance, shouting and brushing away the insects as quickly as I could.
Thankfully the leader of the NDP and possible future premier did not see the spectacle.
Premier Christy Clark has recalled the legislature for June 22 to test the confidence of the house in her government. Multiple sources have reported that Clark expects to lose a confidence vote in the house meaning Horgan could potentially become the next premier.
In our interview, Horgan questioned why Clark had not recalled the legislature earlier.
“When you combine the Green vote and the NDP vote, 57 per cent of those who cast ballots, cast them against the BC Liberals,” he said. “That’s a majority wherever I’ve gone to school and I think that the Liberals should have recognized that a month ago.”
I am inclined to agree. I think the people of British Columbia are hungry for a functioning government.
I hope whatever happens in the next few days will light a fire under the affected parties to make them eager to start implementing their platform, any platform.
I want their pants to be filled with metaphorical ants so they start governing with alacrity because many issues have been put on hold by the election and the ensuing uncertainness.
Has Mainroad East Kootenay been reprimanded for failing in its contractual obligation to keep area roads free of ice this past winter?
What kind of support will the province be giving the City of Fernie now that its population has surpassed 5,000, requiring it to enter into a Municipal Police Unit Agreement (MPUA) with the province?
How will the province help East Kootenay lumber mills deal with the current softwood lumber crisis?
We don’t know, because there hasn’t been a functioning government for six weeks. It’s about time one was formed so the business of governing the province can continue.