Winnipeg Free Press

Winnipeg Free Press (Newspaper) - December 20, 2007, Winnipeg, Manitoba Comment editor Gerald flood 697 7269 Gerald. Flood free press. My. Ca v new fro the w est a n d b e y o n d a 11 Winnipeg free press wednesday december 19, 2007 Winnipeg repress. Com c canadians Hung up the phone on former prime minister Brian Mulroney years ago. His four hour appearance before the commons ethics committee was excruciating to watch. First he declined to testify under oath. Then he admitted he received $ 1,000 Bills in envelopes in hotel rooms not once or twice but three times from Karlheinz Schreiber in 1993 and 1994. Finally he said he did not disclose the Cash when questioned under oath about his relationship with Schreiber in his 1996 libel suit against the Federal government because it was a separate matter. Ottawa paid him $ 2.1 million. Bloc quebecois my and former Quebec Justice minister Serge Menard noted that $ 1,000 Bills were so much the currency of illegal transactions that the Bank of Canada cancelled the denomination in 2000. Mulroney said he did not Deposit them in a Bank. He put them in his House Safe and in a safety Deposit Box in new York. He has since disposed of his records. He did not pay taxes on the Money $ 300,000 or $ 225,000, does it really matter until 1999, when Schreiber was charged with fraud. This sordid tale humiliates Mulroney and Canada. When we review our politics since 1984, we realize its been a steady Story of improvement promised and improvement denied. Who can forget the Pivotal moment of the 1984 televised leaders debate. All drawn up in righteous indignation Over Pierre Trudeau is departing patronage orgy Mulroney zeroed in on the hapless John Turner. You had an option sir. You could have said i am not going to do it. This is wrong for Canada and i am not going to ask canadians to pay the Price. You had an option sir to say not and you chose to say yes to the old attitudes and the old stories of the Liberal party. That sir if i May say respectfully that is not Good enough for canadians. Soon after journalists on the Mulroney Campaign reported Mulroney boasting he would Only appoint liberals and new democrats when there Isnit a single living breathing conservative anywhere in the country without a Job. He lived up to that Promise. And More. Fast Forward to the next regime change. Touring Rural Manitoba in May 1993, soon to be prime minister Jean Chretien tapped into voter outrage at conservative scandals at every Stop. The country is in a mess i will Promise to do my Best to restore honesty to government honour to Public service and Hope in this country and its institutions. A decade later the Liberal party lost office and its historic base in Quebec after the Federal auditor general and a Public inquiry found millions of dollars of taxpayers Money to sponsor Canada in Quebec had instead filled Quebec Liberal party coffers. So another new Broom swept into Ottawa in the Persona of the re United right of conservative prime minister Stephen Harper. With his roots in Alberta and the Reform party Harper Rode the tide of disgust at Liberal excess. He set his standards very very High. Never since confederation would such ethical Rigour govern the conduct of Public business in Ottawa. Almost two years into the mandate of this clean As a hounds tooth government the tooth Isnit gleaming any More. Harper culminated against jobs for the boys. Now hers appointing his own with the identical Speed and alacrity As his predecessors. Indeed hers even demanding special dispensation. After All his government is surrounded infiltrated indeed incapacitated by ideological Liberal enemies under every bed in the Senate bureaucracy and courts. Harper culminated against Liberal partisans earning big Bucks for touching up who they knew in the prime ministers office. Now one of harpers oldest and closest political allies Ken Boessenkool a co signer with Harper of the 2000 Alberta firewall letter has become Taser internationals lobbyist in Ottawa. Close to Harper Boessenkool is even closer to Public safety minister Stockwell Day having worked for him when Day was Alberta finance minister. Day is in charge of the ramp and its tasers. As can West Ottawa columnist Don Martin penned last saturday Boessenkool has Only been severed from or. Harpers office since 2004 and hell be peddling tasers influence Down two corridors of Power harpers and Days where he commanded considerable influence As a policy wonk. Harper culminated against taxpayer funded partisan polls. He appointed former parti quebecois Cabinet minister Daniel Paille to probe Liberal polling rubbing his hands in glee that Paille would uncover if not another sponsorship scandal at least a huge embarrassment for the entitled to my entitlements party. Alas for Harper Paille found that the conservatives outspent the liberals on polls almost two to one $ 31.2 million in the last year almost twice the $ 18 million spent annually during Liberal years. The conservatives commissioned More than two polls per business Day a figure Paille Calls quite astounding. The Harper government tried to Bury Pailles report by releasing it on Mulroney is Mea culpa Day. Improvement promised. Improvement denied. Parade of pms shows that hypocrisy is non partisan squeaky sure. But clean d despite the Federal accountability act Many of the alleged questionable actions in the Mulroney Schreiber affair Are still Legal Federal conservative politicians and some political commentators have claimed recently that the alleged scandalous actions of the Mulroney Schreiber affair happen now or at least Are now illegal because of the conservatives one year o l d f e d e r a l accountability act Faa. In fact because the conservatives included Only 30 of their 52 promised measures in the Faa and have implemented Only 24 of the 30and because the Faa did not close dozens of other loopholes nor strengthen enforcement it is still Legal to make unlimited donations to some political candidates to give Large gifts to Federal politicians to lobby in secret to become a lobbyist soon after leaving office to make patronage appointments to hand out Large contracts without a bidding Competition and for politicians to make decisions in which they have a financial interest so what Are these devils in the details of the Faa while Only individuals can now donate not More than $ 1,100 annually to each party each part yes Riding associations and each part yes election candidates whether or not the donation is used for the candidates Campaignio is still Legal to make an unlimited donation in secret to a nomination race or party leadership candidate As Long As the candidate does not use the donation for their Campaign. While Federal ethics rules prohibit gifts that could influence a politician or government official they Only have to disclose things they own Worth More than $ 10,000 and the ethics commissioner does not audit them. As a result it is easy for a Federal politician or official to hide gifts Worth up to $ 9,999. But you May be saying at least we know who is lobbying politicians and officials so we can Monitor their relationships. Unfortunately no secret lobbying is still Legal. If you work at a for profit corporation you dont have to Register if you spend less than 35 Days actively lobbying every six months. You also dont have to Register if you do unpaid lobbying. The registrar of lobbyists does not do regular audits to prevent undisclosed lobbying. As Well lobbyists Are not required to disclose details about How often they Are in touch with politicians or officials. Well you May be thinking at least the revolving door has been shut Down so former politicians and government officials Are not lobbying. Sorry but no. While the Faa bans former Cabinet ministers and top officials from becoming a lobbyist for five years ministers can exempt their staff from the ban most officials can Start lobbying after one year and All other Federal politicians and their staff can Start lobbying the Day after they leave office. In addition the ban Only applies to direct Contact or arranging meetings to try to influence decisions. Everyone in the Federal government can still the Day after they leave government be paid to give advice in secret to anyone about How to influence the governments decisions. Of you May claim but at least Cabinet ministers cant appoint unqualified party loyalists and friends. Sad to say but such patronage is still Legal because the Federal conservatives broke their Promise to establish an Independent Public appointments commission which would have used a Public advertised Merit based process to select appointees. All right you May think at least Federal politicians and officials cant be involved in decisions if they have an interest in the outcome. If Only it were so. In fact the Faa Cut the Rule that prohibited Cabinet ministers and top officials from doing this. Yes thatus right. A finance minister could own $ 1 million of a Banks Stock and still be responsible for changes to the Bank act because the act affects All Banks an environment minister could own $ 1 million of a polluting company is Stock and still be responsible for changes to the environmental Protection act because the act affects All polluting companies Etc. But the conservatives ensured that its illegal to hand out contracts without a bidding Competition right Well generally yes but one big exemption allows government officials to decide that Only one company can provide a product or service and since the conservatives were elected this exemption has been used to hand out billions in military hardware contracts without any competitive bidding process. Of one last try you say at the very least Federal politicians and government officials can be penalized if they lie about or hide such activities. Sorry to disappoint you even further but the Faa actually Cut the Rule that required Cabinet ministers their staff and senior government officials to be honest and the Faa did not contain eight promised measures that would have made the Federal government much More transparent. In other words another stronger accountability act is needed to give canadians the honest ethical open representative and waste preventing Federal government they want and deserve and every provincial territorial and municipal government needs to pass a similarly Strong accountability Law. So if you want such a government get in touch with your local politician while most of them Are Home for a Holiday and Tell them you know All the devils in their accountability system and that you wont vote for them next time around unless they fully clean up their government. Duff Conacher is the coordinator of democracy watch Canadas leading government accountability democratic Reform and corporate responsibility advocacy group. Wow. Clean government. Ca accountability act unaccountably weak by Lisa Towell n of things More fun than surprising someone with just the right Holiday gift. But when the gift is an animal the Story does not always have a Happy ending. Ive been a Volunteer at my local animal shelter for almost nine years. I always read the Little cards on the front of each Cage to see Why a dog or cat has come to us. Moving out of state. Not enough time to spend with dog. Cant afford to keep. Or simply does not want cat anymore. I look at the Friendly anxious faces in each Cage and my heart Breaks knowing that Many of these unwanted dogs and cats got their Start under the Christmas tree. When people receive animals As gifts they re less Likely to make a commitment for the animals lifetime care. Is the new pet owner ready to provide daily care and affection for 12 to 16 years or longer does this particular animal fit the persons lifestyle and financial Means costs can add up quickly not Only for food but also for vet visits and emergency care when the dog Steps on a Thorn or the cat eats a toxic houseplant. Dogs need outdoor exercise every single Day and its a huge time investment to train and House break a Puppy. For Many people a Well mannered adult dog or a Lap cat is a better fit than a High Energy Puppy or Kitten. Problems might not surface right away with a gift pet. That adorable Puppy or Kitten wearing a Christmas ribbon will be the Center of attention for a while. Then the family gets Busy with jobs and soccer games or perhaps a new baby is born and Rusty or Ginger gets ignored. Small problems quickly become big problems and finally the family delivers their pet to the animal shelter assuming that he or she will be placed in a new Loving Home. But rust yes not a cute Puppy anymore and he barks a lot because hers lonely and bored. Ginger is a big cat now and she claws the furniture because she a snot Given a scratching Post. These animals dont have much Hope of catching any ones interest and after a few Days or weeks they will be euthanized to make room for More dogs and cats. If you know someone who really wants a companion animal How about giving a gift certificate for the adoption fee at the local animal shelter wrap up a food dish some toys and the gift certificate and put them under the tree. Or buy a dog bed or cat Carrier and wrap it with a stuffed animal and the gift certificate. After the holidays you can All go Down to the shelter together and pick out just the right animal. One of the most important lessons we can teach our children is respect for other living beings. Dogs and cats Arentt disposable and they dont belong under the tree with the other gifts. To show the kids what the Holiday season is really All about take them to the animal shelter after the new year begins and give an unwanted dog or cat the precious gift of a forever Home with your family. Lisa Towell is a writer and animal shelter Volunteer in California. She wrote this for people for the ethical treatment of animals. Mcclatchy Tribune news service smart santas dont give animals As gifts Duff Conacher Frances Russell Fred Chartrand / Canadian press archives former Liberal Leader John Turner left takes a Tongue lashing from Brian Mulroney. Frank Gunn / Canadian press archives Jean Chretien sponsorship scandal Fred Chartrand / Canadian press archives Stephen Harper big spending on polls ;