Raj Sandhu, Candidate for Councillor – Ward 1

By Miriam King Bradford West Gwillimbury Times August 26 2010
Since Raj Sandhu and his family moved to Bradford in 1989, he’s had a broad range of experiences within the community. He’s worked in the Holland Marsh; as a general labourer, a cabinet-maker; part-time in a gas bar, in his family’s business, and now works for Magna’s Cam-Slide Manufacturing, in Newmarket. He’s had experience in the office, in management, and “on the floor.”
Over the years, Sandhu has also served on numerous boards and committees. Currently, he sits on the Committee of Adjustments, the Financial Oversight Committee for South Simcoe Police, and is Vice President of Nottawasaga Futures, an agency established to promote economic development in South Simcoe.
Now, he’s running for Ward Councillor in Ward 1.
“I always had a passion to serve the community,” he says. “I’ve been on many boards, volunteer work – to me, this is just the next step.”
Sandhu ran in the last municipal election and feels that “some of those issues are still there.” Key for residents of Ward 1: completion of the long-promised road leading north from Southfield Heights Subdivision.
“It’s a promise that’s been made for years,” he says – and a safety issue. Should emergency responders need to access a residence in the subdivision, they currently must drive down Melbourne to the 6th Line, west on the 6th, and then back up through Southfield Heights. “Those 2 minutes mean a lifetime,” he says, noting that the residents “don’t care about the politics – they want the road.”
Other key issues? Downtown revitalization, and spending by Council. “People are trusting you with their money. It’s their money,” he says. “Where’s the money going to come from? It comes from (the taxpayers).”
While taxes are “a reality, if we want the lifestyle,” he says, there is a need for “more transparency, and accountability.”
Sandhu is also hoping to change public perception of politicians, admitting that there are some negative stereotypes out there. He describes himself as someone who is open, accessible, yet not afraid to speak his mind. And he wants to hear from constituents – “I want to be their voice.”
It’s not enough to communicate every four years, at election time, he says. Right now, there tends to be a “disconnect” between Council and residents. “I would be a bridge. If it needs to be said, it will… That’s what I believe in. We’re living in 2010. We’re one small village now – the whole world is. We all have to work together.”
He adds, “Anyone who runs for public office, they owe it to the people to be available to the people… Any resident of the Town shouldn’t be hesitating to come up and ask you a question.”
Sandhu, who is married and has 3 children, plans to be available through his website, and a 24-hour phone line. See www.voteforraj.com or raj@voteforraj.com, or call 905-252-0971.
He has one more message. “Everyone who puts their name in (as a candidate) deserves a thank you or a credit, because they’re taking time out from their family… Every campaign should be clean. It should be a campaign that you can hold your head up, and that your kids can be proud of. I will run that kind of campaign.”