Lethbridge MLA defends himself against gossip while fellow MLA’s take flack

As we now know, a number of Alberta MLA’s have also had to confess and apologize.

Pat Rehn, the MLA for Lesser Slave Lake, travelled to Mexico and Municipal Affairs Minister Tracy Allard vacationed in Hawaii. Her Instagram account showed a video of her offering a holiday message from the Alberta Legislature, when she was actually on the island from Dec.19 to 29. Allard insists the timing and placement of the message was not an attempt to cover up he real location.

It doesn’t end there.

James Huckabay, Premier Kenney’s chief of staff, travelled to the U.K. and came back via the United States on Boxing Day. Also, on Saturday (Jan 2), RDNewsNOW confirmed the Press Secretary for Red Deer-South MLA Jason Stephan was in Arizona. He is currently working on returning to Alberta, as per Premier Kenney’s directive, which was issued on Friday.

That’s the background of the fiasco. While the preceding is fact, social media fiction quickly painted MLA Neudorf with the same brush, which lead to a lot of questions on his Facebook site.

Neudorf Facebook response

Neudorf and his wife at Nikka Yuko Gardens on New Year’s eve

Neudorf and his wife were Not out of the country – either before Christmas or after, as the above photo with date stamp proves it.

The Lethbridge-East MLA also taped a New Year’s message at Exhibition Park, in which he is holding a Lethbridge Herald newspaper that has a Christmas week date on it.

It should be noted that Government ministers and MLA’s were allowed to travel outside the country on government business, as long as they followed all of Alberta’s COVID-19 protocols, which included 14-days of isolation upon return to Canada.

Many of the aforementioned cases were strictly vacation related. In the case of Red Deer’s Jason Stephan’s trip to Arizona, he stopped short of apologizing for his actions.

“I support individuals and families having the freedom to choose for themselves whether they travel or not, provided they are respectful of others in doing so. International travel, in and of itself, does not negatively impact Alberta’s COVID curve if it is done responsibly.”

Stephan went on to say, “I do not consider myself an exception to health guidelines. I have never asked Albertans to do things that I, myself, would not do – and that includes not travelling.”

However, on the face of it, there is a significant element which the errant MLA’s may have failed to recognize.

While they are able to travel, the MLA’s represent many Albertans who are unemployed and having a difficult time paying bills, small businesses have closed, and others reduced services – many Albertans are hurting and in despair. Many Albertans did not – or could not – spend Christmas with their families. Some MLA’s have exhibited compassion for their constituents, while others have created more discouragement.

The actions of the travelling MLA’s, have solidified Albertans belief that there is one set of rules for them and another for those who were elected to represent them. It is behavior that is lacking in circumspection and disparages all those who sit in the legislature, no matter their political stripes.

Unfortunately, the Premier’s action to assuage the issue may have fallen short.

On New Year’s day, Jason Kenney took the blame onto himself, by stating that he had “made an error by not issuing a clear directive earlier, that they should not be abroad because of the COVID-19 pandemic.”

The problem with the statement is that every other Albertan knew what was expected of them. There should have been no need for government officials and MLA’s to have it spelled out for them or for the Premier of the province to play helicopter parent for his ministers, who should know better.

Red Deer MLA Jason Stephan noted, “There is already too much contention in our society.”

He is right about that. He and his fellow MLA’s created some of it, and there’s enough reproach to go around in this province that we could all do without warmed over gossip and innuendo.

Let’s stick to facts. Nathan Neudorf and his wife did not go to Maui for Christmas and his fellow MLA’s need to reevaluate their function and purpose, in their relationship to their constituents.

by Editorial

Lethbridge MLA defends himself against gossip while fellow MLA’s take flack

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