Jan. 25, 2012 - Issue #849: Blind Date

Vuepoint

Business as usual

The Wildrose Party continues to uncover new public bodies that have illegally donated to the Progressive Conservative party. The groups range from the University of Lethbridge to arms of Alberta Health Services and even smaller groups such as the Students' Union at the University of Lethbridge. The money is in small amounts—a few thousand, a couple hundred—mostly going toward the premier's fundraising dinners. And it seems Albertans don't care. A recent poll by Leger Marketing shows that 37 percent of people who know about the illegal donations don't care and will still vote PC.
But if Albertans don't care, the people responsible for their illegal donations seem to care even less and are downright confused as to what they've done wrong. The Medicine Hat Catholic School Board stated they didn't know it was wrong to donate. It's perhaps confusing since the events are titled in an ambiguous fashion. Attending something called "Premier's Fundraiser" and then not understanding that it is actually a partisan event is perhaps understandable. But that lack of distinction runs deeper than an event name.
The governing party and the government melded into one entity somewhere between their second and third decade in power. The premier and the leader of the Progressive Conservatives have for so long been the same person that Albertans often think the only way to influence who that person is is to join the party and vote in its elections rather than waiting for the general election. We don't see a distinction.
Members of these boards and public bodies have stated that they attend these events to fulfill their mandate of networking and advocacy on behalf of their members. But when public money goes toward those endeavours it makes it appear as though attendance at government, and the governing party's, events is mandatory—a part of everyday business rather than the explicit choice of an individual to attend a function and meet people. That's why the distinction is made. It only serves to advance the idea that the act of advocacy and governing happens outside the boardroom and in small gatherings of the unelected and elite—those who can pay $200 for a dinner. The chair of the Medicine Hat Catholic School Board said he was never pressured or even formally invited to an event: they were advertised so board members attended. That is how business is conducted.
These actions are completely unsurprising—public bodies attempting to buy favour with government with public money. It sounds outrageous, but in Alberta it has become business as usual. The only surprising element is that we're still talking about it three weeks after the first allegations came out.

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