CITIZEN PRESENTS PETITION ON MEDICAL MARIJUANA

Local resident Sylvia Treptow presented the mayor with a petition
signed by 152 residents opposed to discussing the medical marijuana
issue at the city council table.

Treptow appeared at the Nov. 16 meeting of council to present the
document which has been available at Work 'n'Play and Yaky Jacquie's
for the past few months.

"The citizens want council to stop talking about the medical marijuana
issue," she said. "In other words, remove this topic from your
council table for the duration of your term in office."

Treptow also reported on research she has done on the medical
marijuana task force that Coun. Joy Davies has started and which may
bring recommendations forward to council in January. Davies has
refused to identify the members of the task force.

Southern Interior MP Alex Atamanenko responded to Treptow's inquiries
stating in a letter that he has not been contacted by anyone involved
with the task force since he agreed to be a part of it.

Dr. Andrew Larder, senior medical health officer at Interior Health,
said in a letter to Treptow that any employees participating in the
committee would be doing so out of their own personal interest and not
as representatives of Interior Health.

"The laws and regulations concerning the use and supply of medical
marijuana fall within the Federal Government's jurisdiction," he
wrote. "Interior Health has no position with regard to these laws and
regulations. Interior Health also has no position on the
establishment of a supplier of medical marijuana in Grand Forks."

Davies denied not including Atamanenko in her e-mails about the task
force's work. As well, she said she "had a letter on file" regarding
the Interior Health representatives.

Davies also criticized three city councillors, Cher Wyers, Michael
Wirischagin and Gene Robert for signing the petition.

"Having spoken to our CAO, no councilor should ever sign a petition no
matter what level of government, because we are government and we make
the decisions," she said.

However, Wirischagin told the Gazette there was nothing wrong with
councillors signing, or even starting, petitions. He also said Davies
brought the matter up months ago internally and he was told by the
city manager that there was nothing wrong with councillors signing
petitions.

"That's what we do," he said. "We lobby."

Robert said he was one of the first to sign the petition and says the
city manager has not spoken to him about it.

"I don't give up my taxpayer rights just because I'm a city
councillor," he said. "Municipal government does not have the legal
authority to deal with this issue. Perhaps Joy Davies should have run
for federal politics."