Filipino community gets the least Ontario funds

Filipino community gets the least Ontario funds

By Tomas Vargas

The slush funds controversy by Liberal ex minister Colle, shows that the Filipino Community is way below in McGuinty’s Liberal government priority.

Where did the Liberal Slush Fund go?

Community Recipients– Grant Received
Jewish– 15,016,692
Indian HinduSikh– 1,342,003
Greek– 1,000,000
Ontario Cricket Association– 1,000,000
Arab Community– 816,113
Hispanics– 708,910
Islamic institute of Toronto– 500,000
Armenian Community Centre– 500,000
Chinese– 367,391
Iranian– 200,000
Afghan– 215,000
Jamaican– 200,000
Catholic based– 132,695
Filipino– 125,000

See website: http://www.auditor.on.ca/en/reports_en/MCI_special_en.pdf

In spite of the fact that the Filipino community is the Fourth largest ethnic group in Canada, the current government has chosen to ignore our community, judging from the way the “slush fund” was distributed. I think it is now time for us Filipinos to wake up, and find out who really our friends are.
It is so sad that Filipinos tend to treat these politicians like semi-god after they have given their organization some of their slush crumbs. Organizations should not accept their offering of useless certificates every time they are invited, their useless pat in the back for the things we do anyway. We should demand more from these politicians!

If you look at the data above you will notice a great discrepancy on how the McGuinty government treated different communities, some group with too much respect, some with a lot less, some with hardly anything. You will notice a lot of clout for one and hardly any for the other. Somehow it is hard to understand why the mainstream media and the opposition do not want to expand on this topic; we can only assume it is due to vested interest for everyone else.

With due respect to the other communities who received the big fat grants, I do believe that the Filipino community deserves much more!

Let us show the McGuinty government, and the government to come what we Filipinos do when we are ignored. Let us show our collective voice on October 10.