Thursday, July 29, 2010

2695...Helena, Helena, Helena

And I don't mean the capital of Montana.

Ms. Guergis in the news again:

Even Guergis doesn't deserve this
Toronto Star
Wed Jul 28 2010
Page: A19
Section: Opinion
Byline: Carol Goar Toronto Star

As a proponent of women's equality, I find it hard to defend Helena Guergis. She set the cause back.

As a citizen, I don't respect cabinet ministers who throw tantrums, berate innocent people and demand special treatment. She did all that.

As a Canadian, I wince when a political lightweight with a limited understanding of world affairs speaks for my country. She stumbled badly on the global stage.

But no one deserves to be treated the way Prime Minister Stephen Harper has treated Guergis.

He may consider the 41-year-old MP a political liability. He may want her out of the Conservative party. He may want to cut every perceived link with her husband (defeated MP Rahim Jaffer) and his dodgy associates. But none of that justifies expelling her from caucus on grounds that now appear flimsy and refusing to lift the ban when police find no evidence of illegal activity.

It is beyond me why Guergis would want back into a party that clearly doesn't want her. But she is owed the courtesy of a face-to-face meeting with her former boss and an explanation of what she did wrong.

Harper set her up for a crash. He promoted Guergis far beyond her level of competence, shrugging off her repeated missteps. Then he turned on her with a vengeance; slandering her, shunning her and turning her into a political leper.

If no one speaks out, the Prime Minister will assume he can treat people this way with impunity.

Making sense of the Geurgis saga is difficult because so much of it falls into the realm of rumour, innuendo and conjecture.

Harper has made only one public statement. On April 9, when he fired her from cabinet, he said: "Last night, my office became aware of serious allegations regarding the conduct of the Honourable Helena Guergis. I've referred the allegations to the conflict of interest and ethics commissioner and to the RCMP."

That seemed reasonable. Ministers under investigation are expected to step aside until they are cleared. Her banishment from the Conservative caucus suggested this was no routine matter.

But the story quickly turned murky. Geurgis said she didn't know why she'd been fired. Private investigator (www.thestar.com») SnowdyEND, who'd conveyed his concerns about her husband's business dealings to the Conservatives, told a parliamentary committee he had no proof she'd done anything improper. And Ethics (ciec-ccie.gc.ca») Mary DawsonEND was unable to launch an inquiry for lack of information.

Dawson did initiate a conflict-of-interest probe last month, but it had nothing to do with April's allegations. It concerned a 2009 letter Geurgis had sent to officials in Simcoe County, promoting a waste technology venture in which her husband was involved.

Last week, Guergis received a letter from the RCMP informing her that it had completed its investigation and no charges would be laid. But the Prime Minister's Office insisted nothing had changed. "The RCMP's decision will not affect Ms. Geurgis's removal from cabinet or caucus," spokesperson Sara MacIntyre told reporters.

Does Guergis belong in the cabinet? Not in my estimation. She was the weakest status of women minister in 30 years and a national embarrassment as secretary of state for foreign affairs.

Should she be readmitted to caucus? Yes, according to the Prime Minister's own criteria. He said in April she would sit outside the Conservative caucus until the allegations against her were resolved.

Should she be barred from seeking the Conservative nomination in Simcoe-Grey? That's just vindictive.

It is a sorry tale. The heroine is flawed, the lead character is an autocratic bully and the witnesses are mute.


At least when the Hell's Angels fire one of their managers they do it with speed, panache and finality.

Not the Stephen Harpers.

WFDS

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