SURREY Mayor Doug McCallum has named councillors Doug Elford, Allison Patton, Mandeep Nagra, Laurie Guerra and himself as members of the new Police Transition Advisory Committee. McCallum will chair the committee.
The other four councillors who have been trying their level best to sabotage McCallum’s plan to establish a municipal police force have been left out. Some have indulged in the worst type of dishonest scare tactics and distortions in order to sway public opinion.
“While we await the decision of the provincial government, we will continue to work diligently on the creation of the Surrey Police Department,” said McCallum. “The goal is to have Surrey Police operating by April 2021, and the members I have appointed are collectively focused on ensuring that we are doing all that we can towards the achievement of that goal.”
The Interim Police Transition Advisory Committee replaces the Public Safety Committee. All items that fall outside of the purview of the Interim Police Transition Advisory Committee that would otherwise have been presented to the Public Safety Committee will be provided to Council through corporate reports, Council-in-Committee, and other committees.
The Interim Police Transition Advisory Committee is expected to be in place for three to six months and its mandate is to support the policing transition process prior to the establishment of the Surrey Police Board.
MEANWHILE, McCallum on Thursday slammed the hypocrisy of the three councillors who quit his Safe Surrey Coalition group.
In an email to Vancouver Sun, he said: “Politicians are often taken to task for not keeping their promises. Along with Councillors Elford, Guerra, Nagra and Patton, I fully intend to see through what I campaigned on and promised to do,” McCallum’s statement read.
“With the exception of Linda Annis, the councillors who are now voicing their opposition were more than happy to promise to the voters that they would deliver on a city police department, if elected. … It is disingenuous at best and, at worst, this is another cynical example of hollow promises made by those seeking office and doing an about-face once voted in.”
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