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The need to safeguard and improve public education is essential — especially when challenged with actions that threaten these fundamental principles.

I highlight this concern following a recent statement from Samantha Becotte, Saskatchewan Teachers’ Federation president, that noted from 2020-21 to 2024-25, funding to independent schools has increased by 79 per cent. Meanwhile, public school funding has only increased by 13 per cent during that same period.

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Now, more than ever, we must prioritize the needs of all students, support at-risk communities, foster inclusivity and champion evidence-based learning by defending public education that benefits all of us in society.

We must demand that decision makers at every level address the many important issues in our public education system including: stable funding for public schools; overcrowding within existing facilities; providing resources for students with special needs; addressing diverse needs; and recruiting additional personnel.

I firmly believe that the protection of public education is a shared responsibility. It is crucial to ensure that every child has the fundamental right to education.

Governments at all levels must step up and allocate essential funding to develop a strong and thriving public education system, rather than undermine or diminish its importance.

Ted Jaleta, Regina

(Jaleta is a Regina school board trustee seeking re-election.)

2024 election a repeat of 1980s elections

Another election is coming up and it is a virtual repeat of elections in the Grant Devine years of the 1980s. Due to gerrymandered electoral boundaries favouring rural voters, a conservative government will likely cling to power. As we have seen in the past, this never ends well.

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Rampant corruption and massive debt will place the province in a very precarious position. Inevitably, the NDP will regain power, but only when the province is in financial ruins. This will lead to austerity measures to pull the province out of bankruptcy.

This should be a major indicator our province needs urgent electoral reform, where a segment of the province does not dominate provincial politics leading to financial crisis. The present system is undemocratic and does not hold the ruling party to accountability.

As it stands now, a rural voter holds more voting power than an urban voter. Basically, city dwellers should just walk over to the nearest toilet, drop our ballot in and pull the handle. This is why our province can never pull itself out of the ditch, when conservative parties keep steering our finances off the road.

Grant Devine put us $10 billion in debt and the Saskatchewan Party (the new alias for the old Progressive Conservatives) that rose from the ashes has now increased Saskatchewan’s current public debt to $31 billion. This system needs to change.

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Howard Brass, Regina

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