Winnipeg Free Press

Winnipeg Free Press (Newspaper) - November 29, 2000, Winnipeg, Manitoba A15 Winner re 2000 political donation loopholes disturbing by Aaron Freeman we now have irrefutable proof that Canadas Law for disclosure of political donations is a democracy watch last week released the results of its efforts to see just How bad the Loop holes in the Law the results Are disturbing i the liberals accepted an illegal Dona Tion from a despite the fact that the donation arrived with a return with the address even appeared on the and was sent to the corporation in i the Reform party took Money from a fictitious organization called people for the status a donation was made to an nip rid ing association for a candidates Cam and it never appeared in the party annual filings with elections these donations were each just Over the Legal threshold for but Given How easy it was to make these they illustrate just How optional the disclosure regime and How wealthy special interests routinely use loopholes to hide the Money they Are donating to party evidence if youre looking for evidence of larger consider that in the 1997 Federal nearly one Quarter of the million in Campaign Money raised by Cabinet ministers came from numbered Riding associations and other sources that mask the True nearly raised by the tories in 1997 came from just two numbered these donations of dubious origins Are just the tip of a very dirty millions of hidden dollars flow into rid ing associations and Are then transferred to candidates and parties at election hundreds of thousands of dollars flow in through numbered Shell corporations and other Blurry donations to maps Only fall under the disclosure regime during the five week election and the Law fails to require Dis closure of donations to party Leader ship All of these problems Are Well Many were identified a decade ago by the Royal commission on elec toral Reform and party others have been repeatedly highlighted by democratic Reform experts and Canadas the chief electoral most recently during the liberals overhaul of Canadas electoral Law last the loopholes would be so easy to Quebec and Manitoba have banned donations from corporations or and have placed a Cap of on All other encouraging parties to broaden their base of Ontario requires Dis closure of All including those to Riding for All the problems with Money in politics South of the at least citizens know who is providing the Money for their in the presidential for Candi dates disclose their donors on a monthly right up to election eternity in parties disclose their donors names once a and they wait up to 18 months which can be an eternity in politics before doing because the Date of the Dona Tion is not there is no Way of knowing whether the donation coincided with a key Bill or act of parliament affecting the for election period Candi dates file their disclosure forms six months after the ballot is so we have no idea who the financial backers of the various candidates Are when we make our voting the Law could easily require donations to be disclosed with election period donations disclosed a few Days before election All the major parties already report to elections Canada so the numbers could be immediately placed on the Agency web site for All to citizens have a right to know the names of the wealthy special interests who Are bankrolling the political especially As is invariably the these interests Are those with the greatest stake in government decision our politicians have chosen an optional system disclosure for donors who dont mind having their contributions made and a smorgasbord of loopholes for donors who prefer to remain the last Batch of governing maps chose to ignore the obvious failures of Canadas political finance leis Hope the next Batch is More Penlight Anam free Man is a columnist with the Hill times and a Board member of democracy i politics rears its ugly head after the election is Over Murphy Toronto one of the More quaint attrib utes of Canadian elections is How firmly apolitical they politics we leave until after the this is especially True in municipal at least it is in the Amalga mated City of mayor Mel Lastman faced about 25 oppo including a drag Queen self described As a cleaner and Community there was also an elderly Folk Singer who claimed to have created a Cayenne Pepper Carrot juice cocktail that helps drug addicts kick the the mayors main oppo if he could be described As Looker spent the elec Tion Campaign trying to get noticed by either the press or Lastman or he dressed himself in various costumes on at least one Robin in one of his less successful he spent election Day chained to a toilet in an abandoned Hospital demonstrate he the plight of the after the the politics not so much As what to but to Divide the Perks of office and the High profile committee Here the real politics emerge in efforts to create the context in which the issues will be framed so As to keep the troublemakers in their place and to keep the ship of state from a Case in Point would be1 the main Promise that last Man made during the election to divert about 80 per cent of the cites garbage away from the traditional he was forced to make this Promise because he failed in his Effort to get the cites garbage out of town before the election so it could not be a Campaign the if carried will add an additional million annually to garbage disposal that not Likely to happen even though it is really chump change in the general scheme of More serious political issues include a lion subsidy to the Toronto transit there is also the planned go transit costs that the province ordered the City to contribute half of Public or what is left of has been downloaded by the province on the City and will Cost about million plus unknown amounts for repair and Upkeep and higher mortgage when the province pushed amalgamation on the it projected enormous Cost to prove its the province loaned the City Mil the savings didst materialize and now the loan must be at least the province says it there Are other issues no one wanted to speak about Dur ing the the real 800pound is the ongoing property tax reassessment Stan Beau Toronto Sun Lastman watches the proceedings leading up to a vote Over Toronto garbage removal there Are other issues no one wanted to speak about during the for there Are plans to tear Down the old Gardiner which is now almost always overburdened with if that is new surface roads would have to be built and paid perhaps through a proposed or or on the Agenda is a confidential study on How to privatize Many Public services and it is also rumoured that the new municipal act soon to be advanced by the provincial government will Man Date extensive tax freeze then there is the 2008 olympic bid that is tied to waterfront for the City will have to find when elected mayor three years ago Lastman promised a tax he has been Able to do More or by crimping and postpone the cites deteriorating infrastructure and declining services illustrate this Toron tos says treasurer Wanda will Dou ble to billion by the City is in the midst of a building the real 800pound is the ongoing property tax reassessment across the City it is estimated that property values have risen 21 per cent Over 1996 property own mostly in the former will face a relatively modest tax property values in the former City of Toronto have risen an average of 32 per these homeowners will face a huge property tax since the province has already moved to Cap the tax increase on a disproportional increase will be forced upon residential it even that Over the next three the incoming Council in Toronto will preside Over significant tax increases As Well As a diminution of in the the provincial and Federal govern ments boast about budget the Cial in has come out of the Urban centres As a result of the downloading of traditional senior government responsibilities for Public transit including roads and by draining resources for education and health away from the if you place All these causes and projects in one the Central political Issue the cites relationship with the provincial govern ment the politics Are whether the City will continue to accept its powerlessness in the face of provincial hostility or make common cause with other Urban regions and Force a new political All of which would make a Good political election Campaign some letters to the editor the free press welcomes letters from they must include the authors address and Telephone letters May be letters to the 1355 Mountain r2x fax email programs halt saved child i want to personally thank Carol for her perseverance and loyalty to if it were not for my child May have been Noth ing More than a to make a very Long Story my Childs surgery was cancelled one Day before the sciences Centre heart surgery was cancelled and under since i do not live in i had no idea As to what was Only that the surgery had been i Only Learned of the problems when it hit our local paper several Days although my child had been it left me with nothing but fear and a total mistrust of my heart aches for All those parents who lost children due to surgical prob my Only regret is that Jonah Odim did not recognize his own Lack of Durigal skills and suspend the pro Gram himself before any of this had it is because of these called whistle blowers that my child is alive and so to Carol Youngson and All the others who sup ported her thank please know that although Many children you did manage to save others from the same my child is living Debbie Devevey Thunder Bay taxation essential for civilized society taxation is an essential for civilized without we would be reduced to a chaotic survival of Only the Rich and powerful the Rich and powerful in today society propagate the myth that we Are All they do it very Well since they control our who advocate cutting and slashing income and capital gains tax Are those who would Benefit most the economic social equation is dependent on income and if governments succumb to the pres sure of the wealthy and reduce tax they must Cut Public social spending spending for Public and the wealthy dont need and dont want to fund Public they can afford to provide All of the services they require in a modern it is essential that we employ taxation to ensure reasonable income to government to provide adequate services available to All regardless of income or social a Mackling Dugald Granger comments troubling we Are writing to express our concern with the recent remarks made by Alliance candidate Betty Granger during her participation in a political studies lecture at University of win her remarks reflect a mislead ing and simplistic View of immigration and fail to acknowledge the contributions made to our communities by students who chose to come to Canada to Complete their while we support is grangers right to express her views in a free and democratic it is indeed troubling to learn that someone who is a trustee with Winnipeg school Divi Sion harbours such the senti ments expressed in her comments Are inappropriate for someone who car Ries the responsibility for making decisions that affect thousands of Stu dents in Winnipeg education in particular for a school division with a student population of such diverse a population which also includes visa students from other Harold Rampersad president Manitoba association for rights and liberties Winnipeg should Granger sit As trustee i have read with great interest the free press coverage of Alliance candidate Betty grangers recent withdrawal from the South Winnipeg electoral As a Southeast asian i am completely appalled at is grangers discriminatory allegations and unsubstantiated As a professional in the social services sector that comes into frequent Contact with the students she is ultimately responsible i am deeply disturbed by her Irres Ponsi inflammatory puerile has she not considered the economic benefits of the asian and Pacific rim Trade it is estimated that growth in the Region will account for at least on half of Overall worldwide economic growth in the next Canada is trying to sell itself to these potential foreign investors As a country with a diverse and dynamic workforce on the cutting Edge of High this Asser Tion is Only buttressed by an employ ment Pool that is comprised of citizens who Are representative of the global Freedom of expression and thought is Paramount to our but when one considers that is Granger is a trustee in a school division that is a barometer for the remarkably diverse and multicultural society that is today one must pause to deliberate whether or not is Granger is the right representative for the most vulnerable and impressionable segment of our Shaw Winnipeg doonesbury by Garry Trudeau ;