Not to be overly cynical, but how many times can people profess to be shocked by the way politics works, and has always worked?
The latest case in point is the so-called cronyism scandal in Ontario, which is said to have rocked the government. Veteran media commentators are astounded that Premier Doug Ford’s former chief of staff, Dean French, appointed people he knew to a variety of positions, some big, some trivial. Was this even remotely surprising?
The problem with patronage appointments, or cronyism if you prefer, is when the crony is laughably unqualified for the job. That was the case when French appointed a 26-year-old kid who was going to make $165,000 to represent the province in New York. His primary qualification for the work was a friendship with French’s son.
French lost his job for that, and he should have, but the continued effort to sniff out more cronies has caused the resignation of a chap who used to buy insurance from French and another who was appointed to a board that sits six times a year and pays members $275 a meeting. That’s not a plum, it’s a prune.
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See Also:
(1) DRIVER REPORT CARD: Best and worst motorists by Ontario city
(2) Sudden death investigation at home of former Ontario health minister David Caplan
(3) Ontario high school teachers won’t have a contract before the academic year starts, union warns
(4) Ontario can’t ignore the dangers of making booze more available