What about the rules?

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 17/09/2011 (5517 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Greg Selinger, of all people, knows better than to hold a press conference announcing a new partnership with the owners of the new Winnipeg Jets during an election campaign.

So obviously the lure of having True North Sports and Entertainment chairman and governor Mark Chipman essentially endorse the NDP on the campaign trail was too good to resist — fine shmine.

On Friday, the NDP leader sat down in front of the cameras with Chipman to announce the creation of a new partnership to support at-risk high school kids in Manitoba.

As you read in an article on the Sun website yesterday, the new program, co-sponsored by the province and the new Winnipeg Jets True North Foundation, is based on Chicago’s successful After School Matters program.

For the record, we have no beef with the program itself. Its aim is to give job training and mentorship opportunities to high school students during school hours. The After School Program will bring business, community organizations and professionals to teach kids in five areas: sports, science, technology, performing arts and communications.

It sounds like a great program, and we believe it could be a smart way to help students better prepare for futures within the job market.

But the program’s announcement was overshadowed by the fact that the head of a sitting government has blatantly used it to further its election fortunes during the 90-day blackout period before the Oct. 4 provincial election — a time when governments are not allowed to advertise their programs or activities.

This is a clear violation of section 56 (1) of the Elections Finances Act.

And while Chipman may deny it with words like “I’m not a political guy,” the fact of the matter is Chipman just added more Jet fuel to Selinger’s re-election campaign. We don’t buy his denials for a minute.

It doesn’t matter that he isn’t a card-carrying member of a political party, nor that the announcement of the program coincides with the start of the school year and the upcoming start of the Jets’ season. This quote from Chipman makes it perfectly clear who he’s endorsing:

“We were very pleased to work with Greg and his government when we built this facility and through our process in bringing the NHL back to Winnipeg,” Chipman said during the press conference. “We are equally excited to carry that partnership forward on initiatives that are really the byproduct of our previous work together.”

At the same time, another high-ranking NDP minister has found himself on the wrong side of the act this week. The actions of Ron Lemieux, the minister responsible for local government, are being investigated by Manitoba’s commissioner of elections, after Progressive Conservative Party officials filed a complaint.

It seems Lemieux presented a $15,000 cheque to Jenny Plett of Landmark for upgrades to an area park. The big question is did he used the cheque to bolster his election bid.

As the CBC reports, although the grant had been approved in the spring of 2010 and the park was rebuilt in August 2010, Lemieux didn’t present the cheque until he attended the Landmark Friendship Festival last month.

Like Selinger’s little announcement yesterday, Lemieux’s presentation took place during the 90 days before election day.

Brandon Sun readers may recall that Lemieux and Selinger aren’t the first New Democrats to be accused of breaking election laws.

In 2009, Manitoba Finance Minister Rosann Wowchuk was slapped on the wrist for handing out a $50,000 cheque to the Provincial Exhibition of Manitoba during two byelections held in other parts of the province.

With all these NDP officials breaking the rules that govern how our elections are run, what the heck is the point of having an Elections Finances Act when members of the sitting government flagrantly disregard it?

Perhaps we need stronger fines.