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Greetings Governors and interested parties...
It seems we have a case of The Good, The Bad and The Ugly going on here with the OCA!
First, THE GOOD!
My plan for Chess in Ontario:
If I am elected as President of the Ontario Chess Association, this is what I plan to do.
As previously mentioned, I pledge to announce a date and location for the Ontario Open 2008 within two weeks of being elected. I will also work with whoever is the new Treasurer to sort out the finances and get the money rolling down to the leagues, and various other people currently owed money for running OCA sanctioned events. I also plan to promote chess throughout the province. Chess is at an all-time high in several areas and these would serve as a great building block for other areas that have been neglected recently.
As part of this plan, I will launch a Tournament Promotion Assistance Plan. While I cannot make any specific funding promises because we have seen absolutely no financial information for the OCA in the past year, what I intend this to be is a plan to which tournament organizers may apply for support. The Executive would select one event per year from each of the leagues for OCA sponsorship. Priority would be given to areas that have not held an event recently (or at all), or to organizers who have relatively little experience. The support provided would include a financial contribution (based on available funds), promotional support (help creating advertising and a website) and direct, personal support for the organizer and/or director of the event.
In addition, I would open up the OCA website and make it available to use for tournament websites, creating a central location for all Ontario events, not just the official OCA events. I will also investigate to see if the four leagues are interested in being hosted on the official Chessontario site.
In short, my plan is to offer some new encouragement to existing volunteers in chess around the province, while providing incentives for new people and areas to join in. Together we can all build a new golden age for chess in Ontario.
Next, THE BAD!
Not only has the present OCA Executive withheld money from the leagues, now we find out from our Youth Coordinator's report that the President personally withdrew OCA sponsorship of the OYCC (an OFFICIAL OCA event!) just days before the event, when it was almost impossible to reduce expenses at all and the money was being counted on!
Next, THE UGLY!
We now have the report of VP Hal Bond and we find out that the Trillium grant problem is in fact much worse than we were already led to believe! Trillium is merely biding their time until after the OCA election before renewing their investigation! Hoping, no doubt, to have a cooperative Executive to work with!
Barry, I have to ask you, under the circumstances, why you think you even DESERVE to be reelected? It now seems you've broken not only OCA regulations, but Trillium ones as well! Have you perhaps even broken the laws of Ontario or Canada?
OK I know it usually stops here, but this is THE WTF?!?!
Four of the five "Current Nominations" for the OCA Executive are in fact members of the Brampton Chess Club! In effect Barry wants to have even more complete control over the OCA than he already did! Also in a blatant case of political interference he did not list my candidacy for President in the Agenda he sent out with the proxy forms, despite them being sent out nearly a full day after I announced that I was running for President. The final case of WTF, is the Treasurer Alice Laimer. I have not met Alice so I have no personal opinion about them, however all they have apparently done all year is tell Barry that they're willing to do it again next year. No financial statements of any sort, and they have the gall to seek reelection!
Governors of the OCA, it is time for a change. If we reelect Barry now, that shows that we support his past actions which may bring Trillium down on the entire OCA rather than just our current president. He has broken half of the rules in the constitution, which he wrote himself!
Please support me for OCA President! I will be announcing by tomorrow morning a full slate of candidates to oppose Barry's Brampton Chess Club takeover of the OCA.
Thank you.
Christopher Mallon
It seems we have a case of The Good, The Bad and The Ugly going on here with the OCA!
First, THE GOOD!
My plan for Chess in Ontario:
If I am elected as President of the Ontario Chess Association, this is what I plan to do.
As previously mentioned, I pledge to announce a date and location for the Ontario Open 2008 within two weeks of being elected. I will also work with whoever is the new Treasurer to sort out the finances and get the money rolling down to the leagues, and various other people currently owed money for running OCA sanctioned events. I also plan to promote chess throughout the province. Chess is at an all-time high in several areas and these would serve as a great building block for other areas that have been neglected recently.
As part of this plan, I will launch a Tournament Promotion Assistance Plan. While I cannot make any specific funding promises because we have seen absolutely no financial information for the OCA in the past year, what I intend this to be is a plan to which tournament organizers may apply for support. The Executive would select one event per year from each of the leagues for OCA sponsorship. Priority would be given to areas that have not held an event recently (or at all), or to organizers who have relatively little experience. The support provided would include a financial contribution (based on available funds), promotional support (help creating advertising and a website) and direct, personal support for the organizer and/or director of the event.
In addition, I would open up the OCA website and make it available to use for tournament websites, creating a central location for all Ontario events, not just the official OCA events. I will also investigate to see if the four leagues are interested in being hosted on the official Chessontario site.
In short, my plan is to offer some new encouragement to existing volunteers in chess around the province, while providing incentives for new people and areas to join in. Together we can all build a new golden age for chess in Ontario.
Next, THE BAD!
Not only has the present OCA Executive withheld money from the leagues, now we find out from our Youth Coordinator's report that the President personally withdrew OCA sponsorship of the OYCC (an OFFICIAL OCA event!) just days before the event, when it was almost impossible to reduce expenses at all and the money was being counted on!
Next, THE UGLY!
We now have the report of VP Hal Bond and we find out that the Trillium grant problem is in fact much worse than we were already led to believe! Trillium is merely biding their time until after the OCA election before renewing their investigation! Hoping, no doubt, to have a cooperative Executive to work with!
Barry, I have to ask you, under the circumstances, why you think you even DESERVE to be reelected? It now seems you've broken not only OCA regulations, but Trillium ones as well! Have you perhaps even broken the laws of Ontario or Canada?
OK I know it usually stops here, but this is THE WTF?!?!
Four of the five "Current Nominations" for the OCA Executive are in fact members of the Brampton Chess Club! In effect Barry wants to have even more complete control over the OCA than he already did! Also in a blatant case of political interference he did not list my candidacy for President in the Agenda he sent out with the proxy forms, despite them being sent out nearly a full day after I announced that I was running for President. The final case of WTF, is the Treasurer Alice Laimer. I have not met Alice so I have no personal opinion about them, however all they have apparently done all year is tell Barry that they're willing to do it again next year. No financial statements of any sort, and they have the gall to seek reelection!
Governors of the OCA, it is time for a change. If we reelect Barry now, that shows that we support his past actions which may bring Trillium down on the entire OCA rather than just our current president. He has broken half of the rules in the constitution, which he wrote himself!
Please support me for OCA President! I will be announcing by tomorrow morning a full slate of candidates to oppose Barry's Brampton Chess Club takeover of the OCA.
Thank you.
Christopher Mallon
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