Jacob Fillmore is fed up with the Liberal government ignoring him and his call for a moratorium on clearcutting on Crown land.
I was lied to, that much is quite obvious Fillmore, who was on Day 17 of his hunger strike Wednesday, said of a promised then aborted meeting with Chuck Porter, minister of lands and forestry.
I am a little disappointed that it didnt turn out as well as I thought it was going to," Fillmore said.
Fillmore has been on a hunger strike to back his demand for a moratorium on clearcutting on Crown land until the long-promised forestry reforms recommended in the Lahey report are implemented.
I would have asked him what the holdup is on declaring a moratorium and asked him if that is not something he could do, then what is, Fillmore, a 25-year-old Haligonian, said of what he would have asked the minister if the meeting promise had been fulfilled.
Does he not feel that the forests need more sufficient protection immediately.
Fillmore, buoyed by an hour-long rally that drew about a hundred people to the front gate of Province House on Tuesday, said he had intended to move his protest from Province House to the lands and forestry office but was told when he got there by the deputy minister that Porter would meet with him Wednesday.
Yesterday was great with the crowd and with what I thought was a promise to meet, said Fillmore, who has been spending his days for the last couple of weeks in front of Province House.
I showed up here (Province House) around 9:30 and waited around, Fillmore said of having been told that Porter would meet him after he finished an earlier morning engagement.
Porter got out of his engagement, got into his car and didnt bother looking too hard to try to find me, Fillmore said.
Fillmore, who had hand delivered a letter requesting a meeting to Porters office on Friday, said he was told later in the day Wednesday by a person in Porters office that he would have to send a formal email in order to arrange a meeting with the minister.
Hand-delivered letters and promises from the deputy minister and even from Porter himself none of that is actually an official promise that he will meet with me, Fillmore said.
Fillmore said that Porter told a gathering in Windsor in his riding of West Hants on Tuesday that he would meet with Fillmore the next day.
Surviving primarily on soup broth and water, Fillmore said the plan for what he might do next is still coming together.
Ill make it until at least next Tuesday, Fillmore said of continuing his hunger strike until the day another rally is planned in front of Province House.
Lisa Roberts, the New Democrat representative for Halifax Needham, raised Fillmores epic protest during the legislative session Wednesday.
Yesterday, amidst many concerns of where we are going as a province, there was one bit of hope which was that the minister of lands and forestry was to meet with Mr. Fillmore today, Roberts said. Unfortunately, and to my great disappointment and his (Fillmores), the minister did not attend that meeting. This is one of many reasons why we ought to be concerned about the leadership of this government on the file of lands and forestry.
In the traditional mandate letters from the premier to appointed ministers that the government made available Wednesday, Premier Iain Rankin said the choices of the past in forestry that led to degradation of the provinces woods have to give way to new ecological forestry choices.
Rankins first directive to Porter as minister of lands and forestry is to implement the Lahey report.
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