“Rules for thee but not for me.” These words seem to ring true in Ontario politics lately.
When the PC government instated a stay-at-home order for the province starting on Boxing Day, we were inundated with messages to “stay home and stay safe.” On that very day, Ontario’s then Minister of Finance Rod Phillips was vacationing in sunny Saint Barts. Somehow a holiday escape to the Caribbean seemed reasonable to a high-ranking public servant, while his government’s lockdowns had forced hundreds of thousands of Ontarians out of work and unable to imagine spending money on such a trip.
On Valentine’s Day, Premier Ford was photographed at a former mayor’s home for a birthday visit. He made this outing while stay-at-home orders were in effect and non-essential travel prohibited. No ticket was issued to Mr. Ford. The following day, he boldly tweeted that “the most important thing you can do for your family is to celebrate with ONLY those you live with.” Meanwhile, Ontarians have made tremendous sacrifices for the past eleven months. Most of us have foregone traditional birthday parties, church services, weddings, funerals, and even seeing elderly loved ones – all things that the government ordered us to do.
Recently we saw PC MPP Roman Baber removed from caucus for speaking out on behalf of his constituents, just as I was removed for voting against the Reopening Ontario Act (Bill 195). On February 17th, Baber attempted to put through a Bill which would temporarily reduce the salary of all Ontario MPPs to the equivalent of CERB ($500 a week) until certain emergency orders are lifted. With less than a full house of MPPs in attendance, the PC’s voted against his Bill and countered with a clearly vindictive motion that would reduce only MPP Baber’s salary. The Speaker ruled the counter motion out of order, but not before the PC Government House Leader made light of the suffering of thousands of Ontarians who have been forced to use CERB under Ford’s arbitrary emergency orders.
To Doug Ford and the PC Government, it appears that honesty and consistency don’t matter. There is one set of rules for them and their friends, and another set of rules for regular Ontarians and those who defend them. We are not “all in this together.”
Belinda Karahalios
MPP Cambridge & North Dumfries
