Past three weeks couldn’t be worse for Wall

In a historical context, this may very well be one of the worst three-week periods a Saskatchewan government has ever encountered.

Given the legacy of the Grant Devine Progressive Conservatives, that says a lot.

Of course, all governments encounter bad stretches.

The previous Roy Romanow/Lorne Calvert NDP government had horrific three-week periods around the 1992 and 1993 budgets, the Channel Lake hearings and the Spudco fiasco.

Brad Wall had his budgets this year and last and the 2010 Serge Leclerc firing over drug use admissions.

And, of course, many, many three-week stretches during the 10-year Devine PC government would qualify. This was the government that saw its entire operation shut down for three weeks after its 1989 introduction of a bill to privatize SaskEnergy. A potential 1991 caucus mutiny ensured that year’s budget never passed. And it spent close to three weeks in November 1984 deciding whether its murderous former energy minister Colin Thatcher should be kicked out of the legislature after his first-degree murder conviction in the death of his ex-wife JoAnn Wilson.

But let us consider what’s happened to Wall’s Sask. Party administration since his Aug. 10 resignation announcement — especially in the context of this having been the most popular premier and government in this province’s history.

Thursday, the current Progressive Conservative Party — whose reputation as the worst in the province may forever be cemented by the 16 fraud convictions of staff and MLAs — credibly argued Wall needs to immediately resign because of breach of trust.

“Yesterday was a sad and troubling day for Saskatchewan voters,” wrote current PC Leader Rick Swenson, referring to the news that former economy minister Bill Boyd has been charged with three counts of breaching the Environment Management and Protection Act 2010 and one count of breaching the Wildlife Habitat Act.

Early this week, conflict of interest commissioner Ron Barclay released his scathing 15-page report on Boyd’s March personal business trip to Beijing. Barclay’s report concluded Boyd “inaccurately represented the involvement of the Government of Saskatchewan in regards to his agriculture business” in “an attempt to influence the decision of potential investors.” So damning was the indictment it forced an apology out of Boyd, and forced Boyd — the man Wall days earlier called the very DNA of the Saskatchewan Party — out of the party caucus. Wait. There’s more. There remains an active RCMP investigation into the GTH’s purchase of 204 acres of land for $21 million — a deal in which Boyd’s farm landlord Robert Tappauf had made $6 million by flipping the land under expropriation to Regina businessman Anthony Marquart. Since CBC broke the story 19 months ago, Wall, Boyd, et al hid behind a January 2016 ruling Boyd requested in which Barclay wrote: “I can state unequivocally that you (Boyd) are not in breach of the Members’ Conflict of Interest Act.”

However, Barclay made it known Wednesday he “only, only, only” ruled on whether Boyd’s personal farmland dealings were in conflict and not on any GTH matters.

“It is clear that the voters of Saskatchewan were lied to before the election, impacting their decision on the ballot, and have been lied to again after the election,” Swenson said. Sure it’s politicking (there is a byelection on). But there’s truth in Swenson’s words that “public trust is paramount for any government.”

“With his actions and that of his government, Premier Wall has breached that public trust and confidence,” Swenson said.

In the last three weeks, Bill Boyd, the so-called DNA of the Sask. Party, has been charged with environmental offences and chastised by the conflict of interest commissioner. He mysteriously and suddenly resigns.

Wall, who until recently had taken his government to historic popularity levels and kept it there for nearly a decade, is being accused of breach of trust. He also suddenly mysteriously resigns, sparking a leadership race.

Jeremy Harrison, one leadership contender who bowed out Friday to support Scott Moe, had vowed to rewrite our conflict laws and says he would have fired Boyd. The last three weeks haven’t exactly been great for the Sask. Party brand.

Yes, there have likely been worse three-week periods for Saskatchewan governments. But maybe not all that many.