Osoyoos chief taken to task for comments

Editor:rnI read with some degree of concern the article in the Sept. 2nd Penticton Herald regarding Osoyoos Chief welcomes UBCO with dire stats on First Nations Education.
Our exalted Chief of the Osoyoos Indian Band, who has received more grants from the Federal Government than any other band I know of, whines to the University elite that they are not offering opportunities to natives.
Chief Louie says that your high schools have not been good to our people . . . Today, our people are still dropping out of your schools at an alarming rate.
I say to Chief Louie, whose fault is this? Your people are supposedly responsible. Surely you have received enough hand-outs from the Government to spend some of it to train your youth to be responsible.
Your people have the same opportunity as any Canadian child to an education in our public schools.
Your bleeding heart speech, as I read it, leaves me cold. It's the same old story – The more you get, the more your want.
The finger you point at our system there are four more pointing back at you.
E.R. (Rod) KerrrnOsoyoos

Editor:rnIt is the duty of every citizen who lives in Osoyoos to be present on October 3rd at 5 p.m. at the Sonora Centre to voice an opinion on the proposed development sell-out of land on Lakeshore Drive that is currently zoned Parks and Recreation and Agriculture.
Again, we must protect our shoreline and any land that is presently zoned Parks and Recreation, as well as any Crown land that may fall into the hands of developers.
I am not against development. I am against development on our shoreline. My message to developers is put your condos elsewhere. Developers want to be on the shoreline for one reason only: to make more money. They are not concerned with our future or the future of our lake, so we must be.
As far as the Official Community Plan is concerned, it is flawed by the very fact that two development-at-any-cost councillors have input into it. I can only hope that this November, the mayor, council, Destination Osoyoos and the silent majority get the wake-up call they deserve.
On the way to the voting station, I'm sure that many folks will remember Rattlesnake Canyon, the dust bowl on Cottonwood Drive, the wall of Oleander, the 12-storey development proposal, the proposed sell-out of Desert Park, the two per cent hotel tax no one but Destination Osoyoos wanted, the sell-out of the beautiful Becker property on Lakeshore Drive to high-density development, the apparent disregard for the health of Lake Osoyoos, various court battles, and most importantly, the fact that the new Official Community Plan promised in the last election three years ago is still far from being completed.
Paul McCavourrnOsoyoos