They came with hats, they came with signs, they came with the TPP on their minds.

The Council of Canadians rallied Tuesday outside Kelowna City Hall in response to a letter by Mayor Colin Basran.

Karen Abramsen, the local chapter chairwoman, says they asked mayor and council to take action against the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP). However, Basran’s response was that the TPP is a federal issue not a municipal one and suggested the Council of Canadians contact their member of Parliament.

“We disagree fundamentally because there are a lot of issues that will affect our municipality and could result in lawsuits against Canada, so we beg to differ with (Basran),” states Abramsen.

The Council of Canadians oppose the TPP deal because they believe it includes an investor-state dispute settlement provision that allows transnational corporations to sue governments over legislation or policies made in the public interest.

Local activist Wes Kmet says they hope to raise the issue of the TPP in Kelowna, so residents want to learn more about how the trade deal works.

“It is all part and parcel of this corporate business controlling more of our world,” he said, adding the TPP deal is set to be bigger than the North American Free Trade Agreement with more issues at stake.

The Council of Canadians claim trade deals like the TPP will give corporations the right to sue governments for changes in policies that threaten profit, diminishing sovereignty.

They claim it will give way to unfair competition, put local jobs at risk and create food insecurity.

Which scares "the living daylights" out of Kmet as he fears more corporate control.

“Sure we want to have fair trade, I want to have good business where we get good product and good money and everyone has a living wage,” said Kmet. “The wealthy and the corporate control has been growing by leaps and bounds and we have to do something about it.”

For those wanting to learn more, the Kelowna Chapter of the Council of Canadians will be hosting a public education meeting on the Trans-Pacific Partnership at Okanagan College May 31 at 7 p.m.