Surely that “openness and transparency” is just around the corner…
When Justin Trudeau sought to gain power, he promised that Canada would have the “most open and transparent” government of all time.
Many Canadians liked the sound of that, especially as the Harper government was seen by many as overly-secretive and centralized.
Yet, in terms of transparency, Trudeau’s time in office makes the Harper years look like a glass door by comparison.
The Liberals have been engulfed in scandal after scandal, and the irony is that the scandals wouldn’t have been nearly as politically damaging if the Liberals had just been open at the start.
They spent months trying to deny the story about Jody Wilson-Raybould and SNC-Lavalin, until they couldn’t lie any longer.
Other scandals, including the WE Charity Scandal have followed a similar pattern: The Liberals compound their disregard for ethics by trying to pretend there’s nothing going on at all. That only prompts more public anger, more demands for answers, and makes the Liberals look even more shady.
With all of that in mind, it’s no surprise that Duff Conacher, the head of Democracy Watch – a well-respected watchdog group – gave the Liberals an “F” on ethics when Conservative MP Michael Barrett asked what grade he would give them:
Ethics Watchdog gives Justin Trudeau an ‘F’ in Ethics. pic.twitter.com/FnDXbLpbtM
— Michael Barrett (@MikeBarrettON) August 10, 2020
The Liberals abused the trust of Canadians.
If they had been just middle of the road in terms of transparency (i.e. just a bit better than the Harper era), that would have been bad enough, considering that they promised to be the best.
Yet, they have been worse than the Harper era, which makes their promise an even bigger betrayal of Canadians. The Liberals used lies to get into power, and that continues to this very day.
Spencer Fernando
Photo – Twitter
***