Canadians are experiencing scandal fatigue with the federal government.
When citizens no longer have the will to try and hold their government responsible for its actions, democracy itself is at risk.
Can anybody blame Canadians for their collective exhaustion?
The Chinese Communist Party election interference scandal has been bubbling for over a year now, and yet there has been nothing resembling a thorough investigation and hearing over the matter. The government has delayed, deferred, sidetracked, and obfuscated on the issue to the point where people are starting to forget what even triggered the scandal in the first place.
Many public figures lost careers over the SNC-Lavalin and WE Charity scandals, yet the inner-circle members of the Trudeau government emerged unscathed despite being deeply immersed in both affairs.
Evidence of direct political interference from the Prime Minister’s Office in the investigation into the Nova Scotia mass shootings in 2020 emerged, yet the government somehow managed to avoid a deep investigation into the matter.
Nobody could imagine seeing a literal Nazi being applauded in the House of Commons, yet it happened last fall. While the debacle was a matter of incompetence rather than corruption or malice, it made news around the world and embarrassed the nation.
Nothing seems to change and nobody in positions of leadership appears to ever be held accountable.
Nobody expects the prime minister to stay in a Super 8 motel or to fly economy on a commercial airline while on vacation, but people do get concerned when somebody “gifts” him the equivalent of more than the average annual income for most Canadians. It beggars belief that such a contribution wouldn’t come with expectations or strings attached. Even if the whole affair is innocent, it reeks of influence peddling. We will never know, however, as the government will continue to stonewall any efforts to get to the bottom of the issue.
The prime minister’s conspicuous consumption while travelling has upset citizens many times before. Trudeau decided to go surfing during the Truth and Reconciliation holiday of his own creation, and he managed to find a $ 6,000-per-night hotel suite to stay in while attending Queen Elizabeth’s funeral. It makes his words ring rather hollow when he claims to be concerned about the economic hardship many Canadians are suffering right now.
The question must be asked: Does Justin Trudeau not realize how offensive his actions have been for Canadians, or does he know how much he has upset citizens but simply doesn’t care?
The only remedy citizens have left will be in a general election, and while current polling indicates the Liberal Party would be decimated if an election were held today, it will probably be close to two years before voters get the chance.
If senior members of the government feel confident they can’t be held accountable for misdeeds until the next election and they feel there is no hope in winning that election, we could be in for more scandals than we ever imagined in the next two years.
Would a plague of scandals increase citizen engagement, though, or would it deepen the apathy and cynicism already taking hold among people?
People need to see an example of accountability soon.
Economic damage from a bad government can be healed. However, the social damage caused by a citizenry that has lost faith in the system could be permanent.
