Dear editor:

From recent letters and comments published in The Lake Report, it is quite obvious that many residents of NOTL are both upset and enraged by the action the present council has taken to fill a vacant council seat.

Despite the claims made by some members of council to the contrary, this action is completely unfair to the NOTL electorate and totally undemocratic.

At the risk of sounding naive, the only possible way of a return to democracy by this council, as seen by this writer, would be for Mr. Niven to now decline the position offered, even though he has accepted, in the face of obvious public outrage.

This would demonstrate an act of selflessness on his part.

Although the controversy is not any of his making and, as some councillors are quick to point out that what they have done is within their legal rights (although many people would still consider their actions to be undemocratic), he is quoted as being committed to thoughtful decisions and is presumed to be honest in his thoughtfulness.

This does not appear to be the case with some members of council when an important decision such as this has been made in secret and without any public input.

If he is at all concerned about the controversy surrounding this appointment and the reaction of many residents of NOTL, he should not find this difficult.

After all, he represents nobody but himself and those councillors who gave him their approval and in doing so were, as they have said, within their legal rights.

Derek Collins
NOTL