Uh oh, it’s happening again. The federal government seems bound and determined to continue throwing good money after bad. This week we are being treated to the shocking news that former prison inmate ombudsman Ron Stewart may have swindled we taxpayers for the princely sum of $325,000 during his last six years in his post.
I assume it has already cost us thousands for Sheila Fraser and her crew to uncover this scandalous waste. Now our heroic Public Safety Minister, Stockwell Day, has got the RCMP involved. No doubt there will be some kind of inquiry and we will be on the hook for lawyer fees and whatever other bills might come of it. By the end of the day, we’ll have spent more “uncovering the truth” than Ron Stewart could have ever bilked us out of.
This seems to be a disturbing trend in government of late. I can’t imagine how much we spent going after the players in the “sponsorship scandal” only to recover a fraction of what was allegedly wasted. I understand that people have to be held accountable, but it seems a little counterproductive when the price of accountability is more than what goes missing in the first place. If somebody stole my wallet from me, I wouldn’t pay a private investigator $1000 to find it, I would cut my losses and get on with my life. Why can’t our government do the same thing?
There is one final insulting twist for us folk who will be footing the bill for all this. If Ron Stewart ends up being convicted and sent to prison, it will cost us over $80,000 per year to keep him there, or roughly $30,000 per year more than he is alleged to have taken in the first place.
5 Comments:
If we let this guy go without punishment, what would deter others from committing these and other crimes? Wouldn't we then be potentially setting ourselves up to be on the hook for larger and larger sums of money?
Well While Agree there should be punishment.. Investigations into the crimes ARE costing us SO much money that it is just insane. There are a lot better places in Canada where the money could be better spent. (Besides Just at Walmart I mean)
Sometimes we are forced into actions we would rather not take - like a parent disciplining a child - but I think a deterrent is necessary, as Joan said. I think it DOES cause a few people to stop and think. I would rather have my tax dollars going to try to stop crime than into some unscrupulous person's pocket for their own use.
You might call this the down side of democracy :)
How about instead of going after these people we learn from our mistakes and implement policies to improve accountability? That way at least we are not being "double-dinged".
Why don't you go into politics, Andrew? Crusade for these reforms on behalf of all your fellow citizens? I am sure there's a spot for you in the Green Party!
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