By all accounts, Nigel Wright is an extraordinary person. He gave up a high income position on Bay St. to accept the call to public service in the position of Chief of Staff. In this role, his performance was exemplary. In fact, the only negative thing I read about his tenure at the PMO was that he did not engage in politics. His actions were governed by what he felt was best for Canada.
And yet, Nigel Wright is human. Human beings make mistakes. What separates a person of high integrity from the rest is the willingness to be held accountable for making a mistake. Nigel Wright accepted the consequences. He appropriately resigned his position and has endured all the media attention with respect and humility. He is not leaving public office in disgrace because he has maintained the standards of what Canadians expect from the Chief of Staff and has left with his integrity intact.
In the summer of 2011, Newmarket Councillor Chris Emanuel attended a VIP reception at the Pickle Barrel Restaurant in Newmarket. He was videotaped introducing himself as Councillor Chris Emanuel which I believe shows clearly that he understood his participation at this function as a "work related" event and not something he did on his private time.
While at the reception, Emmanuel drank excessively. Concerned employees of the Pickle Barrel attempted to ensure that he got home safely and asked him to take a cab. The Councillor lied to the employees when he advised that he had a designated driver. He didn't and he drove. The legal blood alcohol limit in Canada is 80 milligrams. Councillor Emanuel was confirmed as 190 milligrams which is 2.34 times the legal limit. He caused tens of thousands in damages. These are the cold hard facts.
Despite calls from the Era and one of his Council colleague to resigned, Emanuel steadfastedly refused.
Since his conviction, Emanuel has never used his position as a public official to speak out against drinking and driving. He has never volunteered to help out at Operation Red Nose or with MADD or with any other anti-drinking and driving initiative. As far was we can tell, he has never used his experience to help encourage others from making the same mistakes he has made.
But Emanuel does do something. He regularly speaks to school children on the topic of civics.
What does "civics" mean? Civics is the concept that all citizens should be active and involved in their democracy. Civics mean we all have a duty to serve the community at large. We obey the law - not because we might get caught - but because obeying the law is the right thing to do. When we refer to civics we often tag along the word responsibility - as in, "It was her civic responsibility to vote in the municipal election."
Given either Nigel Wright or Chris Emanuel, who understands civics better? Who would you prefer to speak to children on this topic? I think the answer is obvious.
Just a final word on leadership. Prime Minister Harper displayed tremendous leadership this weekend and today in his no-nonsense message. He accepted that his Chief of Staff made a mistake and he dealt with it in the manner one expects from a leader.
By comparison, Mayor Van Bynen is not a leader. He failed us on the Emanuel scandal in the most spectacular way possible showing that he isn't fit to be Mayor. Lacking the principles to demand his Council ally measure up to the base standards of conduct that the community expects from his office, Van Bynen has demonstrated that he doesn't have what it takes to wear the chains of the Mayor.
Newmarket is ranked 10th in Canada. As one of the top communities in the country, we demand to have the best. At Council, that means people of honour who are committed to putting the needs of the community ahead of their own political aspirations. By failing the integrity test, as citizens we have the civic responsibility to put things right. Both Emanuel and Van Bynen should be tossed from office the next time we go to the polls.
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