Minutes of the April 17 2022 Monthly Meeting
Minutes of the Monthly Meeting held on April 17, 2023, through video conference via Zoom
Present/Attendees
- Thomas S. Saras
- Mohammad Tajdolati
- Neel Nanda
- Maria Saras-Voutsinas
- Rosemary Sadlier
- Ricky Castellvi
- Hon. Joe Volpe
- Hon. Basilio Giordano
- Daniela Sprilac
- Michael Li
- Helen Wang
- Rue Hayer-Bains
- Zuhair Alshaaer
- Elsayed Nasr
- Ned Blair
- Jonathan Annobil
- Shahidul Mintu
- Deborah Shatz
- Kamalavasan Navaratnam
- Pooyan Tabatabaei
- Martha Pinzon
- Nishantha Don
- Lankathas Pathmanathan
- Linda Karuks
- Liisa Qureshi
- Zenaida Ferry-Kharroubi
- George Guzmas
- Roberto Hausman
- Arif Ahmed
- Fiza Syeda
- Denis Poirier
- Ragee Arasaratnam
- Lydia Sun
- Leila Monteiro Lins
- Mohammed Bagher Samimi
- Ali Mahmoud
- Ghulam Rasool
- Anfisa Lyasota
- Ranjit Wicks
- Sandie De Freitas
- Norman Hart
- Kathy Lin
- Wais Popalzai
- Teshome Woldramanuel
- Khalid Magram
- Mooka Tamil
- Bobby Wang
- Maria Swietoizacki
- Mike Kolososki
- Susana Donan
- Ernesto Donan
- Khalid Hamid
- Nagamany Logendralingam
- Hermie Garcia
- Mila Garcia
- Eugenia Bakchinow
- Michael Li
- Sima Ghaffarzadeh
- Cezar Bangu
- Zuhair Alshaaer
- Rui Yang
- HaiTien Lin
- Isa Melo
- Yuri Natchetoi
- John Saraidaris
- Said Henry
- Lui Queano
- Tom Bijoet
- Dimitri Papadopoulos
- Ahmad Shah Hotaki
- Kathy Gerasklis
- Athanasios Kourtesis
- Bill Fatsis
- Nishantha Don
Agenda of the day
- Welcome Remarks by the chair.
- Minutes of the previous meeting
- President’s Report/Discussions
- Presentation by David Valentin -Principal, Liaison Strategies
- Presentation by Toronto Mayoral Candidate Ana Bailao
- Presentation by Toronto Mayoral Candidate Erwin Sniedzins
- New Members/New Business
- Adjournment
Welcome Remarks by the Chair:
Mohammed Tajdolati chaired the virtual monthly meeting and declared the meeting open. Roberto Hausman moved a motion to approve the agenda. Yuri Natchetoi seconded it. The motion was carried unanimously.
Minutes of the previous meeting:
Ranjith Wicks moved a motion to approve the minutes of the previous monthly meeting and Kathy Lin seconded it. Minutes of the previous monthly meeting were approved unanimously.
President’s Report/Discussions:
- Thomas Saras welcomed everyone to the online monthly meeting of April. He discussed that he is wrapping up the end of the fiscal year reports.
- President Saras and Chair Tajdolati reminded members of the annual membership fees for 2023.
- President Thomas Saras informed the members under LJI, there are three computers available for members who applied.
- President Thomas Saras expressed disappointment as very few members have applied for the Student Internship program. He mentioned that this program may be terminated due to lack of participation.
- President Saras encouraged participation in the Student Internship program. It has been a remarkably successful project and both students and publishers are benefiting immensely.
- President Thomas Saras would send invitations to all three levels of government for the Press Freedom Week celebration.
- President Thomas Saras informed the members about the Business Innovation Program.
- Tentative date for the celebration of Freedom of the Press Day is marked for the third Friday of May 2023. Food and beverages would also be served at the event.
- President Saras asked that all those with requests for LJI equipment upon approvals to come to the office of NEPMCC to pick up their gear.
- President Saras mentioned that the LJI applications will be uploaded shortly and will advise the group once they can download the application.
- President Saras explained that audits for the various programs we are administrating are happening.
- President Saras reminded all participants in the LJI and Internship programs that they must declare on their outlets that they are receiving financial assistance from the Government of Canada. Maria shared a link to the Government of Canada site with the logo and statement that must be declared.
Presentation by David Valentin -Principal, Liaison Strategies
- David Valentin suggested of conducting a poll on behalf of NEPMCC on the Mayoral election in Toronto from a sample size of 1000. He requested from insights on the questions if any raised by the readership and audience of NEPMCC.
- Hon. Joe Volpe, Lamkathas Pathmanathan, Arif Ahmed, Bill Fastis and others participated in the discussions and asked pertinent questions on the scope of the poll.
Presentation by Toronto Mayoral Candidate Ana Bailao
- The chair Mohammad Tajdolati introduced Ana Bailao to the council and invited her to make her presentation.
- Ana Bailão has a plan to build a Toronto where every resident, no matter their background or where they came from, has access to high-quality services, an affordable roof over their head, reliable, safe transit, and opportunities to succeed. As a Deputy Mayor, housing expert, city-builder, and immigrant from a working-class family, Ana knows how to deliver for
- Torontonians. Ana is running for Mayor because she knows services are not working like they should.
- People are paying more, and they are getting less. She is committed to building a city where every fifteen-year-old has a fair chance to build their lives, their families, their homes, and their careers in Toronto, as she was able to. Her background and the opportunities she has had have shaped her love for Toronto.
- Bill Fastis, Roberto Hausman, Lankathas Pathmanathan, Kathy Gerasklis and others asked a wide variety of questions on issues facing the city. Ana Bailao candidly answered all the questions that were raised to her by the members.
Presentation by Toronto Mayoral Candidate Erwin Sniedzins
- The chair invited Erwin to make his presentation.
- Erwin is running to be effective for people with Special Needs, whether physical, emotional,or financial
- Erwin Sniedzins mentioned that he has solutions for: –
- “Affordable housing that pays for itself
- A TTC that is safe and better for all – now!
- A revamped TTC that will save $1 billion dollars.
- Lower taxes and increase city revenues.
- Enhance police services to reduce crime.
- Hon. Joe Volpe raised some pertinent issues facing the city of Toronto with the Mayoral candidate and thanked him for his time.
New Business/Discussions
- The chair asked if there are any new business for discussion, as nobody asked for the floor, the Chair moved to next item.
Adjournment:
Arif Ahmed moved a motion to adjourn the meeting and Kathy Lin seconded it. The motion was carried. The Chair, Dr. Tajdolati adjourned the meeting at 7:15 PM. The next monthly meeting will take place on Monday, May 08, 2023, via Zoom.
The above notes from the meeting of April 17, 2023, were prepared by Secretary General and Senior VP of the NEPMCC, Neel Nanda.