COPE PARK COMMISSIONER DOES ANOTHER MAJOR FLIP FLOP

Oldtown News
Vancouver, BC

COPE PARK COMMISSIONER DOES ANOTHER MAJOR FLIP FLOP


Spencer Herbert is fast becoming known for his flip flops and I don't mean his footwear.

At COPE, there is the newly organized Gang of Seven who are promoting a coalition with the upstart party, Vision. A party which dumped COPE in the last municipal election.
Now, all current elected representatives of COPE, including Spencer Herbert are backing the gang of seven in their takeover attempt of the COPE executive.

Mr. Herbert has gone on record saying COPE needs to broaden the party, even to work with Vision.

Interestingly in 2004, Mr. Herbert as the COPE fundraiser and Youth Chair was denouncing former Mayor Larry Campbell and sidekick, Jim Green along with Vision Councillors Tim Stevenson and Raymond Louie.

Herbert actually referred to this group as the Gang of Four who were selling out COPE. Now he wants to join them. Hm. Here in Mr. Herbert's own words in a letter to the Editor from 2004 -- JLH


" I became active in COPE because I saw a possibility for a Vancouver that would support all of its members. As an active fundraiser for the party, I was instructed to tell people that COPE supported the vision of more buses and lower fares. (It still says so on their Web site.) As we have seen with the recent fare increase, Campbell and Raymond Louie do not support bus riders and have no problem breaking election promises. Voters and party members were lied to. In the last election, Campbell said that he wanted a city where there would be no throwaway people, where no one would be left behind. These statements are pretty ironic now that starting January 1 even more low-income bus riders will not have the option of using public transit, being thrown away and left behind for a public-private-partnership RAV line.
The COPE executive has affirmed its support for Larry Campbell in a bid to keep him in the party. Rather than kowtow to the Gang of Four's demands, COPE must tell it like it is and say that Campbell and his gang have sold out the party and its principles in a gross bid for power".

Spencer Herbert
Former youth chair
and COPE fundraiser