Victoria-based IntegrityBC says it will conduct a robopoll this week of Lillooet residents to gauge local opinion on town governance issues.
The robopoll began yesterday and will continue until this Friday, Aug. 10.
IntegrityBC said it chose the Aug. 7 to Aug. 10 dates so residents would first have an opportunity to hear the District of Lillooet’s responses to an alternative water proposal put forward by the Community Watershed Planning Committee. The District presented its responses at a July 31 public meeting attended by approximately 60 people.
The organization said it decided to conduct the robopoll after receiving “dozens of calls, letters, faxes and emails” from Lillooet residents following its May 23 news release on town governance.
In that May 23 news release, IntegrityBC described the situation in Lillooet as “municipal governance run amok” and called for the provincial government to appoint a conciliator to resolve what it called “the escalating dispute in the town of Lillooet over local governance and water management.”
IntegrityBC says it hopes by announcing the poll now that residents will take the time to answer the questions to ensure the results are as representative of local opinion as possible.
It promises all responses will remain anonymous.
Unlike a traditional public opinion survey with a set sampling size, IntegrityBC's robopoll will attempt to contact every resident of Lillooet with a listed telephone number. Those with an unlisted number or cell phone only are invited to contact IntegrityBC at info@integritybc.ca to use an online version of the survey.
Local residents report receiving scam calls about public opinion polls, so those wishing to participate in the IntegrityBC poll should listen carefully to ensure they are participating in that poll. IntegrityBC is not promising a free trip to people participating in its poll.
Robopolls, also known as Interactive Voice Response polls, use a pre-recorded script that instructs those answering on how to use their telephone keypad to answer poll questions.
IntegrityBC says it hopes the poll results will provide a useful perspective for residents and the District of Lillooet as the community moves forward.
