But the plea fell on deaf ears. Attached to the letter was a resolution passed by the town's council, outlining its concerns over the Tories' move to close its labs and privatize water-testing services. They sure didn't do anything. Mr. Bolden was Walkerton's mayor for 13 years and sat on the board of the public utilities commission until December 1998. We look forward to your reply on this environmental issue.
Municipalities pass hundreds of such resolutions each year.
Town officials, including the present mayor, David Thomson, have not mentioned the town's plea to Mr. Harris despite the intense media coverage since the E. coli outbreak last month. That may be because Walkerton and two neighbouring municipalities were amalgamated to form Brockton in 1999, and only two Walkerton town councillors from those days sit on the Brockton council. Mr. Harris apologized to the people of Walkerton last week after he implied that the town was lax and hadn't upgraded its water system. Mr. Bolden, the former mayor, said he found the Premier's remarks particularly offensive in light of the fact that the town had been pro-active in lobbying the government to reconsider its recent policy changes pertaining to the province's drinking water. I just think that a person in his position should be responsible and check the facts before he blabbers off at the mouth. . . .