Wab Kinew NDP Election Strategy Includes Boycott Of Two Women Journalists

On a day when the Manitoba NDP could have crowed loud and long about the Pallister PC's re-upping on an MLA who cracked unwanted juvenile 'beaver' jokes to his constituency assistant, party leader Wab Kinew took the wind out of his party's sails before the evening newscasts with a new set of 'woman problems'. The day started with reports that Progressive Conservative MLA Rick Wowchuk, running for re-election in Swan River, had violated Manitoba Legislative Assembly workplace policy 5 times, including showing a former constituency assistant a picture of naked women on his cellphone in 2016. 

“I unfortunately made comments and shared an email that caused offence,” Wowchuk said in his statement. “I deeply regret doing so and I have taken full responsibility for my actions." He added he found the workplace sensitivity training he was required to attend, "extremely valuable". 

Despite his transgressions, and the long list of complaints that didn't register as technical breaches of the workplace protocols about sexism and harassment, Brian Pallister signed his nomination papers. 

But even as that sordid story emerged Thursday morning, Kinew had already greased the skids underneath his party with his not-an-ultimatum to a town hall on environmental issues scheduled for the evening. And the target of his ire, Winnipeg Free Press columnist Shannon Sampert made sure everyone knew the score.  

"Wab Kinew won't participate on tonight panel on the environment if I am a moderator so I got asked to step down" she told everyone on Twitter at noon. "I guess he didn't like my columns." 

Sampert, a retired political science professor at the University of Winnipeg, was one of 3 moderators for the Hotel Fort Garry event and was replaced by Molly McCracken of the "non-partisan" Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives. The west end activist has held many NDP-connected jobs this century, including with the Selinger government as a Health Policy analyst.

It quicky emerged that Sampert wasn't the first woman that Kinew refused to be questioned by.

APTN news host Melissa Ridgen piped up that Kinew had pulled the same stunt over a planned sit-down TV interview.

"Wab Kinew also wouldn't do a sit-down interview with APTN National News this summer unless we guaranteed it was a man asking the questions. 

Now he refused to attend an environmental forum unless the female moderator was removed." 

Both Sampert and Ridgen have been pointed critics of Kinew's nuanced denial he had assaulted then-spouse Tara Hart in 2003, and have assailed his attempt to straddle the line on whether victims of domestic violence are to be believed, or just those who don't name him as their abuser. 

Given that a police report was filed and 2 charges were laid against Kinew- and then dropped without Hart's knowledge - he has never been able to shake the controversy.

Sampert has roasted Kinew and the NDP for various offensive attitudes and behaviors towards women staffers and party members, including the antics of "Minister Tickles" Stan Struthers and she called the party a dumpster fire in a 2018 column entitled "Women deserve better than the current NDP."

Sampert has now set her Twitter account to private. By the time she did, there was already significant backlash online towards Kinew - and to the organizers of the panel including the Green Action Centre, Bike Winnipeg and the Manitoba Public Health Association for bending to his demands.

A Free Press report stated, 

"NDP Leader Wab Kinew and Eric Reder, one of the forum’s organizers with the Wilderness Committee, acknowledged there were conversations between the party and organizers about her role." 

"The decision is up to the organizer as to who they want to host their event," Kinew said 

Reder said it was "unfortunate" the organization had to decide on the event day to ask Sampert to step down ... "It’s crucial that the candidates that are vying to lead the province speak about the environment and the climate crisis in public as much as possible, so when an issue arose... we had to make a decision (Thursday) morning."

Sampert told the newspaper "I am stunned by this ... This is payback for my column on his domestic violence history and his misogyny, and clearly, he still has a problem with women."

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Kinew decided he was going to pick and choose which women journalists he would take questions from during the election, which a well-known University academic called "no surprise to those of us who have followed his career".

"Kinew objected to Ridgen conducting the interview, likely for the same reasons he objected to Sampert: both journalists had done superb, highly critical pieces on Kinew's history of violence, misogyny, and sexism." he wrote in a social media dialogue involving Ridgen. 

"Kinew's demand to control the media displays a nasty streak of authoritarianism, which comes as no surprise to those of us who have followed his career (and observed him at close quarters during his time as -- and this still sticks in my craw -- university administrator, a position created for him by his patron Lloyd Axworthy and for which he was unqualified)."  

He added "but there is enough blame left over for the eco-forum organizers who should have told Kinew to go f*ck himself and that the forum would go ahead with or without him."

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CBC Radio managed to completely dodge the controversy on Friday morning while interviewing Kinew on-air and also in getting a comment from Reder. 

Not only did CBC earn an F to start the new j-school year, they earned an extra F for avoiding the issue DESPITE having also spoken with Sampert beforehand. 

CBC knew they were favouring their former newsroom colleague by giving him the softball treatment. Sampert had told them her side:

"Kinew apparently said it was a decision made by the committee and not because of him... I was told Wab wouldn't appear if I was moderator and they needed three parties to be there so they wanted me to step down."

A recent Probe Research poll found an astonishing lack of confidence in Kinew, even with his own Party supporters: A fifth said assault allegations made them lose confidence in him, with it doubling to 41 per cent between 18-34 years of age. Four out of ten poll respondents said allegations of Kinew committing assault (he was convicted of punching a cabbie) prevent them from voting NDP. 

Now FN and eco-voters - whose journalists he shunned - may well be revising the prospects of their own support for Kinew.

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More election coverage still to come:

- Video of Liberal leader Dougald Lamont commenting about Nahanni Fontaine's undisclosed court garnishee and Pallister's caucus bad boys 

- Wab Kinew meth policy drops the (used needle) ball 

- Two PC candidates agree with Marion Willis and Morberg House, that 800 Adele should be looked at a drug detox facility despite a contract dispute with the building owners and a pending court case against the government.

This is the only independent election coverage in Manitoba - going to press conferences and town halls, following up on tips, asking questions... you can help keep it going with the expenses by becoming a donor! 

Please learn how by clicking here. 

NDP MLA Wages Seized For Unpaid Court Fine, Should Disclosure To Voters Be Required?

Heading towards the Manitoba election, a PC government backbencher brought forward Bill 240, the Elections Amendment Act. 

Winnipeg Police Chief Smyth laughs it up with Danny's NDP Angels, 
(R-L) Wab Kinew, Point Douglas MLA Bernadette Smith, Smyth, Nahanni Fontaine 

Sarah Guillemard, seeking re-election in Fort Richmond, sponsored the legislation which now requires candidates to reveal any convictions they've had under the Criminal Code, the Controlled Drug and Substances Act and the Income Tax Act.

 It was characterized by the Progressive Conservative caucus as an important tool to ensure "candidate transparency". 

Eight candidates have disclosed criminal convictions - 4 New Democrats, 3 Green Party candidates and one from Manitoba First. Candidates who don't disclose could face a fine of up to $10,000 and a jail sentence of up to a year.

The Free Press reported, "The offences range from non-violent civil disobedience and shoplifting to impaired driving and assault. The most recent conviction dates back 15 years while another happened more than 50 years ago."  

The description in the former case is of NDP leader Wab Kinew, who has prior convictions from about 15 years ago for an assault and a DUI. He also disclosed 2 breaches of court orders from that period, all of which have been pardoned.

"These were serious mistakes made years ago, for which they have all taken responsibility," NDP spokeswoman Emily Coutts said in an email statement.  

There are other well-discussed issues that have dogged Kinew that did not fall under the requirements for disclosure, including a domestic violence charge that was dropped without knowledge of his then-spouse. 

There's another matter only vaguely remembered by members of the press corps as coming up. 

My archived notes indicate it was revealed in an 'anonymous' circular when Kinew ran for the NDP leadership against longtime MLA Steve Ashton.  

On Feb 19, 2015, a Certificate of Default for a Provincial Court fine was issued against an employee of the University of Winnipeg named Wabanakwut Kinew, for $556.50 plus $50 costs. Why? In October 2014, Kinew received a speeding ticket that was unpaid. 

According to CTV, Kinew said he "found out about the ticket through an email and didn't realize it was legitimate."

A Notice of Garnishment to satisfy the Creditor, Her Majesty the Queen in the right of the Province of Manitoba, was issued. 

This resulted in a cheque in the amount of $606.50 cents being delivered to the Minister of Finance on March 31, 2015.

Kinew subsequently was elected an MLA and is a candidate in the provincial election. Similarly, in 2011 a Winnipeg City Councilor who later was elected a Progressive Conservative MLA, was the target of a Garnishment Order. But that story has a slight twist.

Scott Fielding was dinged to the tune of $863.25 plus $50 costs. Fielding became an MLA and a cabinet member in the Pallister government, now running for re-election in Kirkfield Park. 

The order was terminated a week later apparently due to a misunderstanding, no wages were seized, and Fielding paid the fine promptly afterwards. 

I have discovered that Kinew was not the only NDP candidate to have wages seized for failing to pay a provincial court fine. 

It could be said, that in his case, Kinew was not serving in public life, and that sometimes, these things can happen. Maybe it was careless but still a simple private matter, was suggested to me, and not Bill 240-worthy. But at least, when his wages were seized in 2015 he wasn't an NDP MLA occupying a seat in the Legislature.  

Winnipeg Police Chief Danny Smyth and Nahanni Fontaine (in blue)
at the joint NDP constituency AGM in March with  Bernadette Smith 

On October 31st 2017, a Certificate of Default was issued for a Provincial Court speeding fine. 

"HER MAJESTY THE QUEEN IN THE RIGHT OF THE PROVINCE OF MANITOBA" was owed $243.80, with $50 costs tacked on. Based on the evidence - the name and the employer receiving the Garnishee Notice - the debtor in 2017 subject to the Order was the same Nahanni Fontaine who was the  MLA for St. Johns constituency at the time, at a salary of $94,513.

A Notice of Garnishment was issued directing her employer, the Government of Manitoba, to withhold the requisite amount of the taxpayer funded MLA salary of Nahanni Fontaine. This Halloween trick-or-treat resulted in a cheque in the amount of $293.80 cents being delivered to the Minister of Finance on January 15, 2018. 

Fontaine, like Kinew, is seeking re-election. Unlike Kinew, the court action attaching her MLA paycheque was never reported in the media. 

Now it may be, that a person could take the position that a previous Garnishment Order from the Crown involving a private citizen (ie while employed at the U of W), does not reach a threshhold of disclosure being in the public interest. 

Fontaine (in blue) gazes at the biggest 'boy in blue', Danny Smyth

However, in this case the debtor is a sitting MLA who has a sworn duty to uphold provincial acts and regulations. 

"Canadians are required to take an Oath of Allegiance before occupying a military, police, judicial or governmental post (such as MLA) as they are charged with creating or administering the law. According to Wikipedia, it was implemented to secure the supremacy of the reigning monarch of Canada, the giving of faithfulness to whom is a manifestation of a key responsibility central to the Canadian system of government."

I've been asking: What if an elected lawmaker defies a court ordered fine for violating a provincial law. Is that something the public has a right to know?

EDIT: (From a reader) "Good analysis. One fact missing, though, is that she was also the NDP justice critic at the time of the unpaid fine and subsequent garnishment."

It was pointed out that would be added costs to taxpayers beyond the $50 surcharge included in the garnishment of Fontaine's wage. 

• The Sheriff serving the notice and filing an affadavit was paid on the public dime. (Maybe the $50 covered that).
• So was the payroll officials who had to redirect her pay to the courts. (The $50 was towards the court's costs, not the government's, so ...) 
• The court officials who had to administrate the payment and reflect it on the public record, were also paid by the taxpayer. 
• By that point $50 to cover costs seems stretched a little thin. 

I also asked some of my readers what message it might send constituents and all voters when an elected member of the Assembly failed to pay a Provincial Court offence fine on time without good reason (ie incapacitating illness, mail strike, etc)? 

The answers were swift and categorical - a wrong message. 

"If their MLA doesn't respect the courts, why should they?"

"Most courts will accept payment arrangements so I suspect these folks felt such entitlement that they were above mere mortals."

"MLA's make $94,000 a year, why wouldn't she pay the fine?"

I asked the Parties if they would contemplate an amendment to the Act to require that garnishee orders filed against an MLA (for instance Fontaine, but not Kinew) be disclosed if they run for election again?  I was not asking about garnishments sought in the course of civil claims, only those involving the Courts seeking redress. At time of publication, none had responded.

It seems to me that along with other basic information a voter wants to know about a candidate, such as do they live in the constituency, and the obligated disclosures under Bill 240, an elected MLA like Fontaine forcing the Crown to chase them to pay a court-ordered fine surpasses the threshold for the public's right to know. 

Without disclosure of a Garnishment Order - which at least informs voters and allows them to question the candidate - there is no step where a candidate like Fontaine would have taken responsibility for stiffing the Crown - and adding expense to taxpayers to have it collected.

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- TGCTS is first to ask if Bill 240 went far enough to inform voters about the conduct of candidates.

- Questions about the government paying rent on the vacant 800 Adele building (and the failed WRHA "harm reduction" needle exchange program) are being exclusively reported on by TGCTS. 

- Politicians can be forced to go off script and address YOUR issues when I show up. That's what citizen journalism does.

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Meth Detox Proposal For 800 Adele Gets Support From All Opposition Parties At Town Hall

St. Boniface Street Links election town hall on addictions and crime policy saw widespread agreement on most issues, with slight variations on how to effect solutions, but unanimous interest in a proposal by the host organization to repurpose an existing facility to meet the public health crisis of meth addiction.

The evening began with an introduction of 7 recovering addicts from the Morberg House residential treatment program, who briefly described the lives they had, which their drug addiction has destroyed. 

A former microbiologist; a Coumputer Science major; a 4 year degree program stopped one year short; another with a completed Master's Degree with a PhD; two others wishing to continue their education, and lastly a young grandfather and artist "glad to be off the meth and be a part of my family again." Putting that context to the concept of a "typical" meth addict brought home to the audience and panelists that this is not so much a drug of the pre-existing down-and-out drug-using segment of society, but rather that crystal meth delivers totally normal people to the depths of hell at breakneck speed.

Liberal leader Dougald Lamont, MLA for St. Boniface, attended the panel held in his riding as did his NDP opponent, Laurissa Sims, and Green Party leader James Beddome seeking election in Fort Rouge represented his party. 

Absent from the Notre Dame Recreational Centre was any speaker for the governing Progressive Conservative Party, which did not send a reply to the invitation. Marion Willis, Director of Morberg House, opened the public Q and A segment with a proposal, after the moderated presentation and discussion by representatives of the three opposition parties. 

Willis described her tour of a mothballed licenced care centre at 800 Adele Ave. in Winnipeg's west end. She was asked to see the building after our widely-watched profiles of the success of Morberg House, an addictions recovery program on Provencher Blvd. in St. Boniface affiliated with Street Links. 

The former nun's residence was leased for use by child welfare agencies for 11 years until the Pallister administration sought to terminate the 20 year contract and ordered a midnight move this winter - but tax dollars are still paying rent on the empty building until next April (video length 2.27).

Willis described the existing 10 stabilization beds with triage on 2 floors and an attached administration building that could become "a centre of excellence to address the meth crisis".

She compared it unfavourably with election promises by Premier Brian Pallister and NDP leader Wab Kinew to spend tax dollars to build new drug detox units.

"It's a Class A turn-key building with 10 beds, the security, it's all there, it's locked in, turn on the lights, put some staff in there, put the Main Street Project, put AFM in there..." 

Willis beseeched the candidates to look beyond the legal dispute the government has provoked with the building's owners. "What this city needs most has been sitting since February empty, locked up, within walking distance of Health Sciences Centre." 

She challenged the panelists what they would do if elected to government, about 800 Adele. Liberal Leader Dougald Lamont replied "If it's suitable, that should be the place it goes." (2.29)

The NDP was in a peculiar position on the issue as it has already committed to an ambitious program of services to be located on Main Street and Logan operated by Main Street Project. But Sims said she was confident that her leader Wab Kinew would be interested in having a conversation about the viability of the Willis proposal as part of their addiction services. (1.20)

Beddome, hoping to unseat Kinew in Fort Rouge, gave a short concise answer stating "we're in a crisis so why aren't we doing something?" (.40)

Lamont, Sims, and Beddome had more to say to the audience about:
 - 800 Adele and the contract dispute between the Pallister government and the owners
-  the WRHA failing to get used needles they distribute off the streets, and 
- their collective support for a safe injection site which got a surprising (to them) rebuke 
- more to come in a follow-up column soon!
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Standing in for the PC Party last night: the very popular rubber chicken.

Here's where we usual pitch to try to earn your financial support for the independent reporting presented on this blog.

No other media hung around long enough yesterday night to get the only REAL news to emerge. 

The ONLY variations from the announced platforms came from the questions about 800 Adele and the failed "harm reduction" needle exchange program - stories exclusively reported on by TGCTS. 

Last night proved that in seeking your vote, politicians can be forced to go off script and address YOUR issues. 
That's what citizen journalism does.

To support this work, whether it's by contributing $5.00, $50.00, or more (and some readers have) - go to this post

GUESS WHO CAME TO VISIT THE MEETING LAST NIGHT, AND WHO CAME TO VISIT THEM AFTER? 

I HAVE THE EXCLUSIVE PICS. 
All donors in the next 4 days will receive a sneak peek.

Construction Billings Owed By Mb. Gov't Exempted From Prompt Payment Law/ Guillemard Talks Fort Richmond Issues

Allegations that construction sub-trades hired under provincial contracts are being exploited by underhanded payment and contract practices struck a nerve with readers online, with one raising the issue of whether legislation already in the works would solve the problem.

Whistleblower Jocelyn Burzuik of Sundance Construction told us her own experience with unpaid invoices for completed work was echoed by voters employed in construction that she met on the hustings last weekend. 

She is seeking election in the Red River North constituency which is a new riding and therefore has no incumbent. 
Jeff Wharton, a Pallister government cabinet minister has shifted over from the former Gimli riding to establish himself as the front-runner. 

She held a protest march outside his former constituency office this summer about her own unpaid invoices but he failed to show, resulting in Burzuik taking the leap into politics to squarte off against him.

Burzuik told TGCTS that a deliberate witholding of interim payments was starving the cash flow of Manitoba-based general contractors and subtrades, warning out-of-province bidders now being handed contracts were going to learn a hard lesson.

One reader responded on Facebook about being a victim of the contract abuses:

"The cost start to mount ... the money we invested, remitting GST and source deductions... alot of us subs work for pennies compared to the big guys cause we (have) lesser overhead...but we are suffering. All we want to do is make an honest living and be paid for our services".

Another reader stated:  
"Lots of the time small construction companies can't keep footing labor costs while they're waiting for a large check to come in and get into a situation where liquidation is the only opportunity"

Another brought up a factor Buznuik hadn't mentioned:

Marty- what about the prompt payment bill in the works? From a supplier point of view, contracts are drawn up with progress payments in the deal. Lacking this, is on the contractor. ... What I am saying so there is legislation in the works to provide a legal remedy for prompt payment for contractors and GC’s. This has been in the works for over a year, most industry associations are pushing hard for it.

In a follow up inquiry, Buznuik said that the payment problems caused 

by the government department still wouldn't be resolved.

"The legislation addresses GC (general contractors) to subs and suppliers. 

Once GC gets paid,  the subs (sub-trades)do with short period of time.

But it does not address the #1 problem - delayed payment from owner, 

normally the Gov, to the GC. 

There is no provision for subs even in existing legislation to get paid 

if the GC has not been paid.

If the Gov delays, which they do, prompt payment legislation means 

nothing. 90% of the time, it's the owner delaying payment.

No one talks about that - yet it's the biggest problem.  

The fact is that today, a government Receivable is no longer a 

"good" receivable. 

She says that factor - that timely payments under a Manitoba government 

contract is not seen as worth the paper it's written on - is affecting 

access to bank credit for the GC's and sub-trades.

A former 19 year member of the Canadian Military who started her 

construction company in 2013, she outlined her own current payment 

conditions:

"Since 2015, I have told Gov departments that I get my cash is 21 days 

or less or I walk. MB Housing - 21 days always.  Hydro 30-45 days. 

MIT 30-60 if they agree on it. INR - I demand cash up front.  

FN's it's cash up front now. 

I don't order materials til 100% of that is fronted. 

I want my labour before I leave bi-weekly. 

Indigenous Services (federal) is paying on 60-180 days normally", she

said,  adding that the provincial Indigenous Northern Relations (INR)

was paying "after 45-180 days - or never."

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I gladly took up the invitation of Jon Reyes to drop by the opening of his dual campaign office on south Pembina Highway, where he's splitting rental costs and sharing efficiencies (like nails and hammers for signs) with caucus-mate Sarah Guillemard. 

Both MLA's were first elected in 2016 and are running again under the Progressive Conservative banner, with Reyes relocating to a newly created riding of Waverly, and Guillemard staying put in Fort Richmond. 

Watch this interview clip and see  Sarah describe the slightly altered riding boundaries, and the different issues between the U of M district and the west side of Pembina. She says that expert educators within the riding would help a re-elected Pallister government fix the shortcomings flagged by parents in the overall curriculums. 

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Go to this link to see how you can join the donors who stand with my independent media platform.

Donations to help cover the costs of covering the Manitoba election have come in from conservatives, liberals and yes, even NDP supporters, - and from a Green Party member last week too! 
There's more news that voters need to know about than just the stories corporate journalism puts out. 

The fundraising campaign has focused on finding 100 donors at $50 each, but some people have kicked in more, and some less. 

I appreciate every dollar that my readers contribute and will continue to work hard to bring your questions and issues forward and to hold politicians and bureaucrats accountable. 

Still to come:  
Tonight's Drug and Crime policy town hall hosted by St. Boniface Street Links at 271 Rue de la Cathedrale at 7 PM; 
- more election video with PC MLA's Shannon Martin, Reyes and Guillimard; 
- more about flawed data and methodology from the WRHA's free needle program failure, 
- and City Hall is going to get an earful about a few things too. 

Manitoba Infrastructure Contract Corruption "Like a Mini-Quebec"/ Bonus Video - Liberal Platform Shifts To Green Turf

A first-time political hopeful says she was shocked at the number of families identifying their most urgent election issue at the doorsteps this weekend in the new riding of Red River North. It wasn't carbon taxes, not health care, not immigration. 

She found dozens of households frantic about struggling to pay their mortgages because of delayed payments on government infrastructure contracts, the end result of a toxic culture embedded within the government bureaucracy.

"Conservative voters are angry and frustrated" Jocelyn Burzuik told me Sunday night. "The areas I was in (East Selkirk and East St. Paul) are predominently small businesses and contractors - and they are not working." 

Contracts are now increasingly being awarded to general contractors from other provinces making lowball bids, while grassroots firms that employ Manitobans are being sidelined.

A whistleblower and former engineering student, Burzuik has years of experience in construction and building and has owned Sundance Construction and Safety Consulting since 2013. She has lifelong roots in the region as a Red River Metis and leapt into politics after the Province failed to pay up on a contract for work done in Nelson House and Cross Lake on the water intake systems, owing her $2.3 Million. 

Now running as a candidate for the Manitoba First Party, she says the core of the problem is the Pallister government turns a blind eye to the 'don't give a damn' attitude of the government's staff engineers. They are supposed to oversee huge infrastructure contracts handed to their allies from corporate engineering firms hired as supervising consultants. 

According to Burzuik, those consulting deals have gradually removed performance liability for the bureaucrats' favored firms, and as a result there is no accountability. 

"It's a dirty business and the Tories are oblivious to it as were the NDP before - the policies and people in the department didn't change."

"The procurement process for construction in Canada is simply rife with corruption.  

The relationships between engineering, government, and legal are incestuous and this brings no value to how our dollars are spent. We see it provincially, federally.

And there is a way to fix it."

Engineers on staff with the Province are supposed to monitor third party consultants that manage road construction, sewer and water, and other projects. Instead, she says, "they fail to execute the contract conditions that protect general contractors, and punish whistleblowers who report uncover poor planning, shoddy work, unsuitable materials, and complain about not getting paid on time - or at all." 

Burzuik cited one company that has still not been paid for work completed for the East Side Road Authority since 2016. 

While door-knocking in the riding, she heard the concerns of government employees that work in construction, as well as general contractors and small business contractors like single trades operators. "The minute I mention I'm a builder and a business owner, the welcome I got was phenomenal. In all areas I canvassed, the conversation was consistent."

The feedback Burzuik got reflected that the sector is being throttled by unpaid progress installments and other bad-faith plays. She says payouts from the Pallister government are being stalled far past the 30 day receivable agreement with general contractors, causing damaging ripple effects throughout the Manitoba economy. 

"People told me they wait for up to 6 months to get a cheque from the department, meaning sub trades and suppliers are suffering without any care shown by elected officials or their department staff. This squeeze on the cashflow of hard-working trades is killing businesses, such as Hugh Munro. That's a family business for 50 years, a Metis business, hundreds of pieces of machinery liquidated." 

Burzuik says Manitoba is part of a nation-wide problem, best understood through the SNC Lavelin scandal that has engulfed the Prime Minister. "That's the model across the country. It's choking the life out of Manitoba construction companies, subtrades and suppliers." 

"Not just SNC - it's time to break up the Corporate Engineering lobby. It's the single biggest drain on tax dollars and props up corruption in construction in Canada. It's not taking millions - it's billions.  

As a consequence of the toxic culture around government contracts, and the fact they can be breached and broken without any consequence, "The best engineers in the province no longer work with the province because they can't wrap their minds around doing work that is not in the public interest - and not being paid for it." 

Burzuik described a cause-and-effect that voters can relate to: 
"Do you have any idea how much money is being wasted in government right now? We don't need more taxation - we need existing dollars to be spent wisely. On the ground, over a few projects- I saw hundreds of millions spent for nothing. Change that - you got your dollars for programs."

"It's like we're a mini-Quebec, that's what it feels like." 

More details to come...
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Last week I was asked to give an overview of the Manitoba provincial election for The Gunn Show on Rebel Media. 

Here's a clip where I describe the Liberal Party campaign launch announcement: 

Sheila Gunn Reid has me on her program every month, generally to discuss the work we do at TheJ.ca, covering Jewish and pro- Israel issues like exposing the links between marxist radicals and antisemites/anti-Zionists of all stripes. 

I am quite glad that my role with Sheila has expanded to providing political analysis about Manitoba and Winnipeg politics and social issues (like harm reduction policies that backfire) for her viewers and expect to be on again before the September 10th vote.

I am reporting on angles and issues from a citizen journalist perspective. This is unique in local media. 

My series about flawed used needle data - where it even is being aggregated - and the fact health mandarins' "harm reduction" policy is based on a study from of all places Baltimore - the study is 23 years old now by the way - has started a discussion not only about dirty needle pick-ups in Winnipeg, but on new ways to deliver detox services to meth addicts. It's making a difference.

My next story on those issues will be a report from an election town hall hosted by St. Boniface Street Links this Wednesday at 271 Avenue de la Cathedrale from 7-9 pm. 

All parties have been invited to describe their platform for Mental Health & Addictions and Crime Prevention and the public will be invited to ask questions. 

The Town Hall provides opportunity for the public to hear from all Parties in a structured, moderated environment. See you there!

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Donations to help cover the costs of covering the Manitoba election have come in from conservatives, liberals and yes, even NDP supporters, - and from a Green Party member last week too! There's more that voters need to know about than just the stories corporate journalism puts out. 

Go to this link to see how you can join the donors who stand with my independent media platform.

The fundraising campaign has focused on finding 100 donors at $50 each, but some people have kicked in more, and some less. I appreciate every dollar that my readers contribute and will continue to work hard to bring your questions and issues forward and to hold politicians and bureaucrats accountable. 

Still to come: more election video with PC MLA Shannon Martin, more flawed data and methodology from the WRHA's free needle program failure, and City Hall is going to get an earful about a few things too.