Armchair Accountability

The public has come accustomed to lip service by the people we pay to do a job. You hear it daily on radio and read it in newsprint. Lip service by definition is just that, phrases used by public servants to give the public the false impression that they are getting their money’s worth. Years ago when I was a police officer we had another phrase for it. It was ‘BBB’ or “bullshit baffles brains!”

A great example of this was reported in the December 1st issue of the Edmonton Journal. The story titled “Cease Fire Eyed for Hobbema” featured the RCMP’s plan to initiate a crime prevention program originally developed in Chicago IL, to fight gang related crime. The RCMP, in recognizing the increase of violent gun crime caused by gang activity on the First Nations Reserves, have looked into bringing “Operation Cease Fire” to Hobbema.

The First Nations Bands of Samson, Erminskin, Louis Bull and Montana have reported gun related crimes at an alarming rate over the past three years. To the RCMP’s credit, they recognize that they need a method of dealing with the victims, the public and offenders of these crimes. In response to this initiative, Kim Misik, a spokeswoman for Alberta Justice was reported as saying “If they come up with an idea for crime prevention, then we’re more than happy to hear about it.” The story concluded with that statement. To the casual reader the story showed that the police are doing their jobs and the government has responded.

All is well, right?

I say nay, nay! Hats off to the RCMP but ‘poo-poo’ to the Solicitor General’s Public Security Division. The simple fact that the P.S.D. appears to just sit around and wait for the police to offer up to the cop-gods solutions to serious short comings in the safety of the public is in direct conflict with the Police Act. Under the Police Act the Solicitor General responsibilities and accountably to the public is clear. According to the Solicitor General’s own website, “In Alberta, the provincial Solicitor General and Minister of Public Security ensures safe communities. Under the Police Act the minister must maintain adequate and effective policing services.”

The Police Act places a statutory obligation on the Solicitor General to ensure that there is adequate and effective policing and that standards are met. This would, by definition, include examination and the study of the violent crime out in Hobbema. It would include a pro-active role in developing or even finding crime prevention programs to assist the RCMP in meeting policing standards in any given community. This would not allow for the Solicitor General to issue a statement of “If they come up with an idea for crime prevention, then we’re more than happy to hear about it.”

You better be more than happy to hear about it! Perhaps we should be giving the salaries of the Public Security Division over to Hobbema RCMP detachment. They appear to be doing the P.S.D.’s job! The situation in Hobbema is clearly the P.S.D.’s responsibility to study, investigate, analyse and to develop, implement and carry out a solution to correct the problem. It is the responsibility of the P.S.D. to, through pro-active solutions, restore good order in the community. Anything less amounts to a failure to carry out the statutory obligation imposed by the Police Act and by the Constitution in placing the administration of justice with the Province, as it addresses the division of powers. I truly hope that the Solicitor General is not satisfied with the level of performance we now see in the Public Security Division.

This level of performance by the P.S.D. has also been demonstrated in the past two years as we witnessed small communities entering in appended agreements with the RCMP under the title of ‘Enhanced Policing’. One example was the Town of Millet funneling tax dollars to the RCMP for an additional Constable to patrol the streets. Like many communities, Millet has a concern regarding preventative patrols and response to several issues arising in their community.
To combat this, last year the Millet Town Council had entered in a three year agreement with the RCMP to provide an additional police officer for public safety. This should have at least raised the hackles of the towns folk, but since the Solicitor General’s Public Security Division had no issue with it, why not?

Once again I say nay nay. Why should the Town of Millet be put into a position of paying additional tax dollars for policing? Section 4(1)(b) of the Police Act states “As part of providing provincial policing services generally, every town, village and summer village that has a population that is not greater than 5000, shall, receive general policing services provided by the provincial police service at no direct cost to the town, village, summer village, municipal district or Métis settlement” Does the term ‘general policing services’ imply inadequate or ineffective? Thankfully, the Town of Millet approved to withdraw from this agreement in their last council meeting.

The tax payers of Alberta has been for too long allowing our public servants like the Solicitor General’s Public Security Division to function at a level that does not prevent victims, over-burdens law enforcers, and cost tax dollars that by law should not be required. It’s time the Solicitor General put people in position that have the abilities to carry out their duties and an understanding of their responsibilities to the citizens of Alberta.