Two letters appeared in your pages last week which touch on a common theme: the responsible stewardship of municipal tax dollars.
This ‘Tale of Two Cities’ — Fort Frances and Emo — could not be more stark. It also provides an opportunity to address Helen Cates’ misinformation.
In Fort Frances, council has been forthcoming about its errors, publicly disclosing that taxpayers are on the hook for $7 million wasted on the Point Park litigation (the total legal fees plus costs paid to opposing parties). We know this amount because the Town of Fort Frances not only complied with its obligations under provincial freedom of information laws, but has proactively recognized that the community has a right to know how their tax dollars are being spent. All of that spending is authorized by council. Leon DeGagne is correct to scrutinize it in his letter. The public is entitled to debate it.
Compare this to the Township of Emo, which for nearly two years has refused to comply with its obligations under the same freedom of information laws. Emo will not disclose the extent of its legal spending to defend Mayor McQuaker’s refusal to provide the basic and routine municipal service of granting a proclamation to Borderland Pride in 2020. Its position contradicts explicit decisions of Ontario’s Information and Privacy Commissioner. The message to the community from Emo’s council is that taxpayers are not owed the respect of knowing how their hard-earned (and increasing) taxes are spent.
Ms. Cates misses this point entirely. Whether or not she (or anyone) supports the aims of Borderland Pride, the point is that Mayor McQuaker and his council are refusing to come clean with the public about how much their actions are costing taxpayers. Their failure to do so is undemocratic, unlawful, and a naked effort to keep the community from having sufficient information to judge their choices at election time later this year.
Ms. Cates also writes at some length (though incorrectly) about the foundation of our constitution. What she conveniently misses is that the constitutional right to free expression is the lynchpin of a democracy. Criticizing public officeholders – like Borderland Pride and Mr. DeGagne have done – is part of how we hold our elected leadership accountable to the public in a healthy democracy.
Taxpayers are entitled to this basic transparency. What is Emo hiding?
– Douglas W. Judson
