Winnipeg Free Press

Winnipeg Free Press (Newspaper) - February 6, 2025, Winnipeg, Manitoba A2 ● WINNIPEGFREEPRESS.COM NEWS THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 6, 2025 NOTICE TO ALL MONTHLY AUTO-PAY SUBSCRIBERS: Effective March 1, 2025, all subscribers currently registered on our monthly automatic debit/credit payment method, will have their accounts converted to 4-week billing. Although your current billing rates will not change, there will now be 13 annual payments instead of 12. This is the equivalent of an 8.3% annual price increase. NOTICE TO ALL 3-MONTH, 6-MONTH AND 12-MONTH TERM PAYMENT SUBSCRIBERS: Effective March 1, 2025, your rates will increase by 8.3%. VOL 154 NO 74 Winnipeg Free Press est 1872 / Winnipeg Tribune est 1890 2025 Winnipeg Free Press, a division of FP Canadian Newspapers Limited Partnership. Published six days a week in print and always online at 1355 Mountain Avenue, Winnipeg, Manitoba R2X 3B6, PH: 204-697-7000 CEO / MIKE POWER Editor / PAUL SAMYN Associate Editor Enterprise / SCOTT GIBBONS Associate Editor News / STACEY THIDRICKSON Associate Editor Digital News / WENDY SAWATZKY Director Photo and Multimedia / MIKE APORIUS NEWSMEDIA COUNCIL The Winnipeg Free Press is a member of the National Newsmedia Council, which is an independent organiz- ation established to determine acceptable journalistic practices and ethical behaviour. If you have concerns about editorial content, please send them to: editorialconcerns@freepress.mb.ca. If you are not satisfied with the response and wish to file a formal complaint, visit the website at www. mediacouncil.ca and fill out the form or call toll-free 1-844-877-1163 for additional information. 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Call or email before 10 a.m. weekdays or 11 a.m. Saturday City: 204-697-7001 Outside Winnipeg: 1-800-542-8900 press 1 6:30 a.m. - 4 p.m. Monday-Friday.; 7 a.m. - noon Saturday; Closed Sunday TO SUBSCRIBE: 204-697-7001 Out of Winnipeg: 1-800-542-8900 The Free Press receives support from the Local Journalism Initiative funded by the Government of Canada READER SERVICE ● GENERAL INQUIRIES 204-697-7000 The threat of a trade war — which economists have said would damage both economies and boost inflation — was resolved temporarily Monday for both countries after Trump spoke separately by phone with Trudeau and Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum. Trump agreed to freeze the levies until March 4 in response to border se- curity commitments from Canada and Mexico. Trump said in a social media post that the tariffs will be delayed to see if the two countries can reach a “final economic deal.” White House press secretary Karo- line Leavitt claimed victory for Trump in his negotiations with Canada and Mexico. When asked Wednesday whether Trump intends to use tariffs to cut taxes in America, Leavitt said Trump “believes tariffs are a great revenue raiser for this country.” Canadian officials have taken little solace from the delay. The president has made a wide range of complaints against Canada, citing trade deficits and Canada’s modest defence spend- ing. He has said repeatedly he wants to make the country the 51st state. Experts have warned that continued trade uncertainty will make Canada a less desirable place to invest than the U.S. Energy and Natural Resources Minister Jonathan Wilkinson, Industry Minister François-Philippe Cham- pagne and Defence Minister Bill Blair were in the U.S. capital this week look- ing to arrange meetings with industry representatives, Republican lawmak- ers and key members of Trump’s team. A delegation of Canada’s premiers will also make the case for Canada in Washington next week. Ford, who is chair of the Council of the Federation, said it’s critical to communicate di- rectly with American lawmakers and business groups. Ford, who used Trump’s tariffs threat as justification for calling an early provincial election, said he will have 15 meetings on his first day in Washington, during which he’ll discuss the benefits of the United States and Canada working together. “I have yet to hear one elected offi- cial, no matter Republican or Demo- crat, (that) thinks this is a good idea to attack your closest neighbour and your cherished ally,” Ford said. “There’s just no reason to be wasting time on this, in my opinion. Let’s build a stronger two countries.” — The Canadian Press Deloitte assessed Northern, Inter- lake-Eastern and Prairie Mountain health regions, as well as CancerCare Manitoba. “While all parties are working to a similar goal, over time, the processes, approaches and culture appear to have shifted to a point where collaboration between organizations can, at times, appear to be at odds,” states an excerpt of Deloitte’s 140-page review. The mega-audit identified issues in the classification of cost savings initia- tives and communication about them. Other chronic problems were trans- parency on budgeting, cash flow and related items and the recruitment and retention of accountants. MNP conducted separate audits into the WRHA and Shared Health. Its reports highlight board turnover challenges and deficits that impede each authority’s ability “to make the best decisions for patient care, plan ef- fectively for future health care needs and support front-line staff.” Asagwara suggested the findings demonstrate the system has “lost its focus,” following years of consolidation and chaos under former Progressive Conservative governments. Kathleen Cook, health critic for the Tories, responded. “Any unpopular decisions in health care that the NDP make over the next few months will be blamed on these audits. They provide cover for the NDP to keep doing what we’ve seen them do since they first got elected, which is pointing fingers backwards.” She noted the data show administra- tors have primarily overspent on salar- ies and dealt with the increasing cost of supplies and drugs. In the Northern Health Region, which has been in the red for the last five years, the 2023 deficit totalled $8 million. That record sum represents a 15 per cent increase in personnel ser- vices, including salaries, benefits, re- moteness allowances, shift premiums and overtime pay. Salaries, medical supplies and third- party staff agency contracts trend up- wards in a snapshot of hospitals in the Interlake area. Prairie Mountain Health recorded a 132 per cent spike in transportation costs between 2021 and 2023, which Deloitte attributed to an increase in air ambulance from contracted services and private agency travel. The rising cost of drugs — expenses surged 53 per cent between 2019 and 2023 — has taken an especially large toll on CancerCare’s bottom line. “Which of those are they going to cut first?” Cook said, adding there are only so many cuts that can be made to ad- ministration-related items. She questioned why the detailed documents were released without a plan to address recommendations made by the authors. A zero-based budgeting approach was prescribed for all of the six enti- ties. This model would require finan- cial planners to start from zero and justify old, recurring and new expenses when drafting budgets. The auditors requested authorities be more proactive in budgeting and draft- ing emergency plans in general while noting there is no clear guidance or parameters on executive management salaries. “The lack of transparency, etc., is concerning,” said Jackson, who repre- sents more than 13,000 nurses in Mani- toba. “What is also very concerning is the lack of acknowledgement from govern- ment that the cost of providing health care is growing every day and the re- sources to match that are not being put into place.” The Manitoba Association of Health Care Professionals and Manitoba Gov- ernment and General Employees’ Union echoed those comments on Wednesday. Greater accountability, better plan- ning and increased co-ordination are needed, but cultural change can only happen when the staffing crisis is ad- dressed, MAHCP spokesman Jason Linklater said. MGEU president Kyle Ross said the money spent on private air ambulances and agency health-care aides and nurs- es would be far better spent on “hands- on care.” Asagwara recently ordered Prairie Mountain Health to slash spending on private nurses by 15 per cent before March 2026 in a bid to bring employees back to the understaffed public system. The minister has directed health leaders to redirect eight per cent of the dollars earmarked for corporate servi- ces to improve patient care before the end of the current fiscal year. maggie.macintosh@freepress.mb.ca AUDITS ● FROM A1 SUMMIT ● FROM A1 Health-care leadership changes JANE Curtis, who oversaw South- ern Health for the last eight years, is now the interim chief executive officer of WRHA. Curtis replaces Mike Nader. Curtis’ former employer issued a news release saying her departure was being announced “with mixed emotions,” owing to the outgoing executive’s “unwavering dedication, visionary leadership, and a commit- ment to excellence in health care.” Health Minister Uzoma Asagwara endorsed Curtis as an “emotionally intelligent leader.” Nader joined the WRHA in April 2021, following more than 30 years of health care operations experience in Ontario and B.C. Prior to taking the reins of Manitoba’s largest health region, he led the transition of 20 provincial agencies and local health integration networks into a single provincial agency in Ontario. Southern Health Dana Human, lead of community and continuing care for the region, will act as CEO until Southern Health’s board completes an execu- tive search process. Human’s resumé includes various leadership roles in community men- tal health services. Shared Health Dr. Chris Christodoulou is in and Lanette Siragusa is out at Shared Health. Shared Health board chair Brian Postl said in a news release that the anesthesiologist was well-positioned to become the interim CEO, owing to his high level of emotional intel- ligence and frontline clinical and program leadership experience. Christodoulou is the provincial authority’s anesthesia specialty lead and a department head at the Uni- versity of Manitoba’s Rady Faculty of Medicine. Siragusa, a registered nurse, had been at the helm of Shared Health since May 2023. She was the orga- nization’s first chief nursing officer and in that role made regular public appearances during the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic. Siragusa faced criticism for tak- ing the CEO job while maintaining a high-level vice-dean position at the U of M. Abigosis drove to Dauphin where he “went to a couple of places” and visited his sister before driving on to Pine Creek, Atkinson said. There, Abigosis went to his moth- er’s house and picked up his cheque, while Paul waited in the car. “I asked Bud if he wanted some- thing to eat, so I went inside and Aar- on was talking to his mom,” Atkinson said. A short time later, she saw children taking soup and bannock to Paul in his car, she said. Atkinson said she and Abigosis visited a house party, while Paul remained in the car. Atkinson said they left Pine Creek and were headed toward Dauphin on a dirt road when Abigosis stopped the car and pulled Paul out of the backseat. Abigosis “started fighting (Paul)… he f—-ing football-kicked him in the balls” and punched him in the face, she said. “I know he was in pain … he just yelled,” she said. “I was pretty shocked.” Atkinson said she heard Abigosis tell Paul “something about being a john and picking up chicks.” Atkinson took the wheel at Abigo- sis’s direction and the group returned to Dauphin, where Atkinson and Abigosis spent the night at his sister’s home, while Paul remained in the car. “I went to the vehicle (the next morning) and he was still there,” she said. “He was breathing and laying there… He was pretty injured and bruised up in the face.” Abigosis’s sister helped Paul into the house while Abigosis took the car “to get some dope,” Atkinson said. The group drove to Winnipeg the next day, with Abigosis at the wheel. Atkinson said they drove past Health Sciences Centre at which time she urged Abigosis to stop and drop Paul off. Abigosis refused to stop. “(Police) cruisers were sitting in emergency,” she said. “He didn’t want to stop there: two native people showing up with a badly injured white man.” After a few more stops, the group headed out of the city toward Roseau River First Nation, Atkinson’s home community. Atkinson said they stopped along the way and Abigosis forced Paul to snort fentanyl. Atkinson said Abigosis drove down a dead end road, pulled over, and asked her to help him drag Paul into the bush. Crown attorney Mike Himmelman asked Atkinson why did Abigosis want to take Paul to the bush? “To murder him,” she said. “He wanted me to help him … I refused. He just got out of the vehicle, grabbed Bud, grabbed some rope and dragged him to the bush.” Atkinson said Paul was unconscious as Abigosis bound him with rope and took him to the bush. She said Abigo - sis was carrying a machete when he returned to the car. Abigosis changed his clothes, At- kinson testified, got back behind the wheel and drove back to Winnipeg. “I just looked at him and said ‘Y’know, we could have just taken him to the hospital,’” she said. “It was a pretty quiet trip back to Winnipeg.” Atkinson admitted later using Paul’s bank card to withdraw several hundred dollars from his account. Defence lawyer Tara Walker accused Atkinson of entering an im- munity agreement with prosecutors to save herself from a life sentence in prison. Jurors heard Atkinson had already entered into the immunity agreement and was being provided with free housing for herself and her young son — Abigosis’s child — when she shot a man while high on crack. She later pleaded guilty to discharging a fire- arm with intent and was sentenced to 7 ½ years in prison. “You’re willing to testify now to protect yourself from another prose- cution,” Walker said. dean.pritchard@freepress.mb.ca TRIAL ● FROM A1 MIKAELA MACKENZIE / FREE PRESS FILES Health Minister Uzoma Asagwara says the audits uncovered fiscal mismanagement. MIKE DEAL / FREE PRESS FILES Mike Nader has been fired as CEO of the Winnipeg Regional Health Authority. MIKAELA MACKENZIE / FREE PRESS FILES Dr. Chris Christodoulou is the new CEO of Shared Health. FILE Lanette Siragusa has been fired as CEO of Shared Health. SPENCER COLBY / THE CANADIAN PRESS FILES Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says he isn’t taking Donald Trump’s tariff delay for granted. MIKE DEAL / FREE PRESS FILES Jane Curtis will temporarily take over the Winnipeg Regional Health Authority. ;