WHERE'S MAYOR RUDY WHEN YOU NEED HIM?

It almost became an all-candidates' forum -- but thanks to the diplomacy of
its moderator, this week's public meeting into drugs and prostitution in
Abbotsford allowed a broad range of views to be heard.

Those views ranged from supporting the proposed Salvation Army bridge house
on Cyril Street -- a controversy that has vexed city council for months --
to cleaning up the city by taking a cue from former New York City mayor Rudy
Giuliani.

The main floor of Matsqui Centennial Auditorium was nearly filled to
capacity as Mayor George Ferguson and councillors spent about two hours
hearing first-hand of problems with drugs and addiction.

The event was moderated by Raymond Penner, who stressed to speakers they
should not just talk about problems -- but offer solutions as well.

Deputy Mayor Ed Fast recommended Penner as a facilitator after seeing him
run the recent hearing into the Inland Pacific Gas pipeline.

"He kept the meeting on track,'' said Fast, adding that results of Monday's
meeting will likely be presented to the new city council in January.

"There were some really good ideas that came forward,'' Fast said of
Monday's session.

He said "some are just common sense" -- for example, giving the keys to
neighbourhood parks to residents so they can lock up at certain hours.
Marijuana is a benign drug, according to two Marijuana Party activists who
addressed the meeting.

Norm Siefken, who is working on Tim Felger's campaign for Abbotsford mayor,
said: "God created the marijuana seed, and I thank Jesus every time I smoke
a joint.''

Siefken said the "best thing'' about legalizing prostitution is that it
would keep minors out of the sex trade. Felger, who offered his campaign
buttons at the meeting, said he would use European examples to open a red
light district downtown, and said drugs are a social and medical problem,
not a criminal problem.

But other views on drugs and addiction weren't so positive.

A man who called himself a "clean and sober heroin addict'' said he started
smoking pot at age 11, and has been in and out of recovery for the last 10
years.

"I found Jesus Christ, and that's the only way to go,'' he said. "I don't
agree with legalizing marijuana, because that's where it all started for
me.''

Others said cocaine and heroin are being dealt from some Clearbrook
merchants acting as a front for the drug trade. "They use our children to
buy their Ferraris," said one person.

And still others said Abbotsford needs a drug detoxification centre now, a
homeless shelter aimed at youth and long-term support for addicts along the
lines of that proposed by the Army's bridge house.

A hardline stance on crime was proposed by Gertie Pool of the Abbotsford
Victim's Rights Movement.

"Make Abbotsford known as the toughest city on crime in Canada,'' Pool said.

"It's no secret we need more, not less police officers. Abbotsford is fast
becoming a hub of hardened criminals,'' she added, citing Giuliani's record
in cleaning up New York City by focusing on enforcing all levels of crime.

Abbotsford's Sister Matthew -- subject of a recent Abbotsford News feature
for her work with the homeless -- said: "I see nothing happening from
council. You tell us what we can do, and we will do it.''