Genevieve Ring says Vernon-Monashee MLA Harwinder Sandhu should be recalled because she is part of the NDP government that has failed British Columbians on the critical issues of COVID-19 and health care. Ring says she’s not ready to wait until the next election, scheduled for fall 2024, to make changes to improve health care. Elections BC says in a statement that it has received a petition from Ring that meets the requirements of the Recall and Initiative Act and will issue the petition on Aug. 12. Any registered voter in BC can apply for a recall petition to be issued for their constituency by submitting an application form, a $50 processing fee and a brief statement of why the MLA should be recalled. Sandhu says she won’t be intimidated by what she calls “a small group of extreme activists who don’t represent the vast majority of people” in the riding. The MLA, who worked as a registered nurse at Vernon’s Royal Jubilee Hospital before being elected in 2020, says she stands behind the decisions the government has made to keep residents and frontline workers safe during the pandemic. “I have worked very hard to diligently represent all the people of Vernon-Monashee and will continue to do so every day because I am so proud of the people I represent,” Sandhu said in a statement Monday. Elections BC says for the recall petition to be successful, investigators must collect signatures from 40 per cent of eligible voters, or 21,268 people, by Oct. 11. Of the 26 petitions previously approved since the act came into force in 1995, none have resulted in the recall of an MP, according to Elections BC. the MLA recall will be allowed to run. “There must be some duty they feel to the people they’re supposed to represent, and he’s done nothing,” Ring said, referring to Sandhu. “I would say the NDP has made it through these two years and is part of it.”
