Premier Campbell probably wishes that his political legacy over the ages will be as the man who brought the Olympics to Vancouver.
However, he runs the risk that people will associate his reign as premier with – as a British newspaper put it - "blood-spattered streets littered with shell casings and corpses."
Vancouver, normally known throughout the world as a peaceful, beautiful place to live, might become perceived as the place where gangs run amok, shooting and killing with relative impunity.
"We've always been told by media experts to never admit that there is a gang war," the chief of police, Jim Chu, said last month. "Let's get serious. There is a gang war and it's brutal."
Under our system of government, it is the primary role of the premier of a province to do everything possible to keep the citizens safe. This buck stops with the Premier, not with any ministers, as the premier has the power to set the priorities of the provincial government and to appoint the men and women as ministers to achieve those priorities.
Given this primary duty, it is the responsibility of Premier Campbell to lead his ministers on trips to visit each and every MP in Parliament, to lobby for the legislation and resources (money and police) needed to stop the gang warfare in Vancouver's streets, and not to rest until this is achieved.
If the Premier does not reduce gangs substantially, and soon, then he runs the risk of becoming known at the man who was in charge when Vancouver became Gangcouver.
