Distrusting politicians

Nov 21, 2007

Anyone who has been paying attention to the political machinations surrounding the federal economic development agency FedNor over the past few months you would be doing well to have any hair left in the old scalp.

Between private members’ bills, petitions and now advisory boards and a drum-beating tour of the north, elected members from Northern Ontario have been looking busy.

If only that was all they were up to.

The FedNor debate has unfortunately taken an ugly tone of late and it could be getting uglier as MP Tony Martin takes to stirring the pot of who is a northerner and who isn’t.

Seems to be about as ridiculous as the periodic racial musings that occur south of the 49th parallel about whether someone is black enough, or Christian enough.
Just what does Mr. Martin think he’s accomplishing by saying the residents of Parry Sound-Muskoka aren’t north enough?

In our eyes the MP is only weakening the case proponents of the north are constantly trying to make in Ottawa and Toronto.

Martin initially found some success taking pot shots at the real estate riches of Muskoka waterfront properties and even baited Nipissing-Timiskaming’s representative Anthony Rota into playing his juvenile game.

But, Rota wasn’t long seeing the foolishness of the process at hand, taking a good look at what matters, the people and the issues they face, before doing an about face on who belongs in the north.

Taking this all in stride of course, is Parry Sound-Muskoka’s slick operator Tony Clement, who hasn’t missed a beat taking the infantile game-players to task for their ‘you’re not north enough for us,’ hustle.

But even better for Clement is that this week he has put the debate back on the track that Martin started the train down in the first place – what is FedNor for.

His advisory board should do something that the debate amongst the Tonys for the past six months hasn’t – something constructive.

His advisory board, we hope, will re-establish FedNor’s purpose and ensure it doesn’t become some political slush fund or worse, an unfocused use of taxpayer dollars.

And it could be said that as minister for FedNor Clement is passing the buck and ducking his decision-making duty.

But after watching the politicos work away for the past while, we believe this is a buck that needs to be kept out of political hands.

Between Martin’s mean-spirited rants about who is north enough for him, Rota’s two-stepping around the issue and Clement’s adroitness at making political hay, it is comforting to see some control returned to the residents and communities that truly rely on FedNor.

After watching Rota take two steps forward and one step back, Clement says he doesn’t trust the Liberals on FedNor.

After watching the three Tonys’ hokey-pokey, we don’t trust the politicians.