COLLINS: The tale of the leaky city

Since no one else is having success finding the origin of the leaks, the mayor let drop at council Tuesday he was going to conduct his own investigation into the situation. I don’t know the reason for the move, whether it was a subtle attempt at intimidation, or something else, but it only resulted in fueling the flames of distrust even further.

And there is really no way the mayor can investigate. Codes of conduct, restrictions on talking to staff members, a media that would hardly blow the whistle on their sources, all make the mayor’s task a daunting one. Can the RCMP be called in? I don’t know.

One thing I do know, and that is, from an internal viewpoint, security of information is critical. Leaks of information that can be considered confidential need to end. And leaks should be dealt with. If someone within city hall staff is leaking information, I would think that would be grounds for dismissal. If it were a council member, he or she would be in conflict of the Code of Conduct they themselves had voted to implement.

The efforts of Detective Hamer-Jackson will not likely see positive results. Aside from Sherlock, I have another image to leave you with, perhaps more appropriate to Kamloops. I see a white horse barreling down Victoria Street, carrying a rider with a mask. The horse rears up, and, lo and behold, there is Ranger Hamer-Jackson to the rescue.

In both scenarios, however, there is a huge gap. There is no one to provide the checks and balances needed to solve the crisis. The one who provides the sage advice to the hero that allows him to move forward. There is no Doctor Watson and there is no Tonto. There is only the mayor. And that’s the problem, isn’t it? One man against the Mongol hordes. Think we know how that’s going to turn out.

I’m Doug Collins and that’s One Man’s Opinion.

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Editor’s Note: This opinion piece reflects the views of its author, and does not necessarily represent the views of CFJC Today or Pattison Media.

by Doug Collins

COLLINS: The tale of the leaky city

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