|
Fera
calls for civil action on CCAC changes
|
by Michael Erskine
SUDBURY---A call to civic action has been
issued by the chair of the Manitoulin Sudbury Community Care
Access Centre Bob Fera. Mr. Fera resigned his position as chair
of the Manitoulin Sudbury Community Care Access Centre (CCAC)
last week to protest Bill 130, the proposed Bill would allow
the province to appoint CCAC boards and CEOs, currently the
CCAC has its board and CEO elected by the public. The Manitoulin
Sudbury CCAC rejected Mr. Fera's resignation and therefore he
is still the chairperson. Mr. Fera issued his call saying, "In
essence the Harris government is asking 41 boards and their
staff across the province to continue cutting home-care services
until December to the frail, elderly and others in need of home
care so that the books balance and then their newly-appointed
and smaller boards can continue doing the same." Mr. Fera said
he believes the government is hoping to "keep the lid on any
opposition until this infamous Bill is passed." "In essence,
all meaningful involvement of volunteers is being truncated
by a government that is only interested in centralization of
power and balancing the books on the backs of the frail and
elderly and most others in need," he said. Helen Johns, recently
appointed Associate Minister of Health, introduced the legislation
while praising the work of the current CCACs. But said that,
"There was an undeniable need for improvements in the operations
of the province's 43 CCACs." Ms. Johns said a study conducted
on the CCACs and an operational review of the Hamilton-Wentworth
CCAC by Pricewaterhouse- Coopers "revealed a poor understanding
of how to correct a situation of growing expenditures." The
study also revealed a "critical shortage of staff members with
business skills or experience" and that there was "no effective
monitoring or management of service utilization and caseloads."
Ms. Johns listed a series of new accountability responsibilities
which would be required of CCACs and would include training
CCAC managers in better contract management techniques to ensure
consistency across the province. "We propose to change the placement
co-ordination processes to streamline the procedures and ensure
that appropriate clients are placed in long-term-care facilities,"
said Ms. Johns. Mr. Fera said it was essential that the Ontario
Association of Community Care Access Centres not play into the
hands of the government and that they should mobilize their
members and the thousands of clients across the province to
"inundate the Premier's office with telephone calls and letters
of protest against this appalling legislation and demand from
this government adequate resources to meet legitimate health
care needs." Mr. Fera also called for the CCACs and their clients
and supporters to swamp Progressive Conservative MPPs' offices
with calls and letters of protest as well, and to demand the
government put forward proper legislation "so that home care
services are uniform and adequately funded across the province."
He also called for the CCAC board members across the province
to resign in protest. "Why should the boards wait to be fired?"
he asked. Mr. Fera accused the Minister of Health and Long-Term
Care of not having the nerve to introduce the legislation himself,
arranging for the appointment of Ms. Johns as Associate Minister
and turning the "unenviable job" over to her. "Mr. Clement is
interested in Mike Harris' job and it seems he would like to
distance himself from this Bill so that no mud sticks to his
image," said Mr. Fera. Mr. Clement declared his candidacy for
the premier's job last week. In addition, Mr. Fera pointed out
Ms. Johns' new executive assistant is Vida Vaitonis, executive
director of the Ontario Long-Term Care Association (OLTCA),
the organization representing private nursing home operators.
He said the OLTCA has been lobbying hard for changes to legislation
regulating nursing homes and homes for the aged. Mr. Fera said
the government has made it clear it plans to introduce new guidelines
for andstatutory provisions which will substantially reduce
the right of people to choose which nursing home or long-term
care facility they wish to move into and will limit client's
ability to move from one institution to another. "It appears
these changes, in conjunction with the funding freeze on home
care, are designed to ensure that, as the numbers of long-term
beds is increased from 57,166 to 77,166 over the next two to
three years, the occupancy rates, and revenues of these facilities
will be maintained at high levels. Hundreds of millions of dollars
are at stake," said Mr. Fera. The cost of maintaining people
at home has been cited as low as one-tenth of the cost of placing
people in long-term care facilities by Mr. Fera in the past.
Funding caps were placed on the CCAC budgets at the same time
as contracts were released for new long-term beds. The majority
of new long-term bed contracts were won by private contractors
in a process critics claimed was weighted against non-profit
long-term bed providers. Mr. Fera said he is concerned about
the effectiveness of the Ontario Association of Community Care
Access Centres (OACCAC) in fighting the changes as the Jeffery
Group, the principle lobbying and constancy firm which is advising
the OACCAC on strategy, is owned in part by Charles Harnick,
a former member of Mike Harris' Cabinet. The two CCACs exempted
from Bill 130 are run by hospitals, a sign Mr. Fera says, the
province does not want the powerful Ontario Hospital Association
involved in the battle. CCACs provide a simplified access point
for thousands of Ontarians who receive home-care services ranging
from nursing home care to home care and home-making services
to specialized medical services and special education needs.
Each of the 43 local CCACs in the province administer multi-million
dollar budgets and collectively they ensure the provision of
services to over 400,000 people and have an aggregate budget
of $1.7 billion. Funding for home care services has risen, according
to the government, by more than 70 per cent since 1995. "It
is vital that board members of CCACs have the necessary skills,
experience and focus to direct multi-million-dollar organizations
and be accountable for the manner in which the corporations
meet the needs of their community," Ms. Johns said in outlining
the government's position in introducing Bill 130. The lines
are clearly drawn in the battle over home-care services in the
province and it will remain to be seen whether Mr. Clement,
the Minister of Health and Long-Term Care will remain outside
of the debate on Bill 130 during his run for the province's
top job.
|
|
Deer
Poaching a problem at Ten-Mile Point
|
by Diana Smith
MANITOULIN ---- There has been an extensive amount
of illegal hunting going on in the Ten Mile Point area of Sheguiandah,
an area situated halfway between the towns of Little Current
and Manitowaning on Highway 6. It was to this area at 2:06 am
on Wednesday, November 14 that Ontario Provincial Police Officers
Dave Goodwin and Julian Tonge were called to assist Ministry
of Natural Resources Officers John Diebolt and Dave Scarlett,
who had a man in custody. Mr. Diebolt had just apprehended a
man coming out of the bush dragging a deer to his car. The deer
had been shot in the neck. The suspect, Terrence Waindubence,
age 48, of Sheguiandah First Nation Reserve, allegedly smashed
Officer Diebolt in the face, knocking him to the ground. Conservation
Officer Diebolt, and his partner, managed to subdue and handcuff
the offender. "In the last month and a half, we have found evidence
of a least 10 deer kills in this area of approximately four
hundred to five hundred acres in size. Five of which were whole
animals that were left," commented Mr. Diebolt. "The other five
animals were taken for the most part. In some instances, they
were boned out and in some instances, we found gut piles." Mr.
Diebolt said the ministry had become aware of the large amount
of poaching in the Ten Mile Point area when they received a
number of phone calls from the general public notifying them
of finding dead animals, or seeing a large amount of ravens
over the remains of a deer kill. "It culminated on Tuesday morning
after we received a call from a passerby. We located a beautiful
10-point buck that had been shot in the neck and appeared to
have had a finishing shot to the head. A second animal (a doe)
was found just a little distance away also shot and left." The
area was staked out and the very next morning the MNR arrested
Mr. Waindubence. Mr. Waindubence has been charged by the OPP
with assault with intent to resist arrest and uttering threats
to cause death and bodily harm. He is out on bail at the present
time, but Crown Attorney Lorraine Ottley requested and received
an interesting bail condition. As a condition of his bail, Mr.
Waindubence is not allowed outside his home between the hours
of 6 pm and 8 am. His first appearance in criminal court is
scheduled for December 17, 2001. The Ministry of Natural Resources
said they will follow through with hunting violation charges
of their own, shortly. Officer Dave Scarlett is the investigating
officer. According to Mr. Diebolt, some deer will escape a poacher
if there is bad bullet placement, but typically, an animal is
taken out whole, so as to leave no evidence that a deer had
been killed. "Typically, at night the poacher will shoot the
animal, drag it out whole and leave no evidence behind that
he has killed the deer," said Mr. Diebolt. Not only is night
shooting illegal, it is dangerous. There is no guarantee that
a shot fired is going to hit its target. A stray bullet could
go through a farmhouse window or hit a passing car, injuring
anyone inside. A poacher also generally uses small caliber weapons
that don't make as much noise. Unfortunately, unless the shot
is right on target these small caliber weapons will only wound
the animal, leaving it to run off to die in the bush. A night
hunter will not go after an animal that runs off. These night
stalkers also usually use a light to blind their prey before
firing. DNA profiles can be obtained through Wildlife Forensic
Laboratories that help in many investigations to locate those
in possession of illegally shot game. It is estimated that as
many deer are poached as are hunted legally. Mr. Diebolt requests
that anyone with information on illegal hunting activities to
call him or Officer Scarlett at their office at 859-2668. Mr.
Diebolt can also be reached at 377-5165, or 1-705-282-7376.
Or, Mr. Scarlett at 377-5780 or 1-705-282-4188.
|
|
MSS
sweeps NOSSA volleyball championships
|
by Neil Zacharjewicz
M'CHIGEENG -The Manitoulin Mustangs are
riding a high after capping off their weekend with some volleyball
championship titles. On Saturday, November 17, Manitoulin Secondary
School (MSS) played host to the Northern Ontario Secondary School
Athletic Association's (NOSSA) boys volleyball championships.
Before a hometown crowd, both the senior and junior volleyball
teams proved victorious, earning the right to call themselves
the best teams in Northern Ontario. This marked the first time
the MSS junior team has ever won the NOSSA title. During regular
season, they boasted a record of 14 wins and two losses. During
the North Shore Secondary School Athletic Associations (NSSSA)
finals, they won three games and lost one to earn the right
to compete in NOSSA. Then, on the weekend, they beat Jeunesse-Nord
in the finals to finish their season with the NOSSA title. The
team, coached by Mike Wesno and managed by Steven Fogal, consisted
of Erik Anderson, Darron Becks, Evert Bell, Kyle Bourque, Christian
Copp, Stan Esquimaux, Eric Panamick, Cassidy Payette, Ben Smith
and Kris Thorpe. Wasse Abin Learning Centre in Wikwemikong finished
fourth in the competition. In the senior division, the Mustangs
boasted a 14-0 regular season record, and swept the NSSSA championship
4-0 to earn the right to compete in NOSSA. The team also participated
in a number of volleyball tournaments throughout Northern and
Southern Ontario, where they faced some of the best teams in
the province, and finished with a tournament record of 17-7.
In the NOSSA finals, the team beat the Northeastern Secondary
School Cougars for the title. The team now goes on to compete
in the Ontario Federation of Secondary School Athletic Associations
(OFSSA) finals in London the weekend of November 23-25. The
senior team consists of Coach Peter Kategiannis, managers Rachel
Russell and Amy Abotossaway, and team members Ryan Anderson,
Jason Bosley, Cole Cranston, Wade Debassige, Jason Diebolt,
Matt Elgie, Kevin Haines, Nathan Meinzinger, Glen Parkinson,
and Nathan Wong. Coach Kategiannis noted this is the second
year in a row the MSS senior team has earned the right to compete
in OFSSA, which should work to the team's benefit, as they now
know what OFSSA competition is like. Last year's OFSSA finals
were held in Kenora. "This time we are hoping to do something.
We are hoping to win a medal," Coach Kategiannis explained.
The NOSSA competition last weekend marked a first in Mustangs
history, he noted. "We have never won both the senior and junior
championships before," he pointed out.
|
|