RCMP appointments look like patronage

Bob Paulson’s promotions should be audited, Darryl T. Davies says

At the end of June, Bob Paulson retired from his position as the commissioner of the RCMP. For many members of the rank and file his departure couldn’t come soon enough.

Indeed, many observers wondered why the Liberal government didn’t take preemptive action sooner and appoint a new commissioner when they came to office. Whether it was the RCMP’s failure to equip officers with adequate body vests and patrol carbines or their mismanagement of sexual harassment allegations, it was clear the RCMP were in a state of crisis.

The critical reports against the RCMP that were released in May 2017 by the Civilian Review and Complaints Commission for the RCMP, the auditor general of Canada and Sheila Fraser, the former auditor general, confirmed people’s worst fears.

To make matters worse, before Paulson retired, he made a number of appointments that look like nothing more than acts of nepotism and patronage. One of the appointments appears to contravene RCMP policy: Dan Dubeau, the senior deputy commissioner of the RCMP, was appointed interim commissioner.

Under the RCMP Act, the next person in line for the job is the senior deputy commissioner. So what’s the problem?

Well the fact is, Paulson also appointed Dubeau’s wife, Guylaine Dansereau, to the position of professional responsibility officer. This is a significant conflict of interest because you have Dansereau and Dubeau holding the two positions that are key to the human resources management of the force.

Chapter three, Section 1.1.12 of the RCMP’s transfer and deployment policy states: “Members with an immediate family/relative relationship to each other will not be posted or located where one holds an immediate supervisory position over the other.” Section 2.6 says “Immediate family means a spouse or cohabitating partner and all children for whom a member is responsible.”

The solution is relatively simple. Either Dubeau has to step down as interim commissioner or the appointment of Dansereau has to be rescinded. In my view, this is a stark reminder to all politicians that when it comes to choosing an interim commissioner of the RCMP a lot more thought has to go into the process than simply appointing the next person in line for the job.

There have been so many questionable appointments made by Paulson that on June 22 I sent a letter to Scott Brison, the president of Treasury Board, asking that he order an audit of all management appointments and promotions Paulson had made since he was appointed commissioner of the RCMP in 2011.

There are enough red flags regarding the way that current appointments have been made to suggest that there may be systemic irregularities in the manner in which past appointments and promotions have been made. Indeed, it appears that if you want to be fast-tracked and promoted in the RCMP, the best way is to get married or be married to a member of the RCMP’s senior executive committee.

Until a new commissioner is appointed, which may be a year away, the government should appoint an interim commissioner from outside the RCMP who has demonstrated leadership, managerial and communications skills.

At the same time, the public safety minister should put his energies into setting up a civilian oversight body so that it will be in place before a new commissioner is even appointed. This was recommended in all three of the reports mentioned previously.

The time to stop nepotistic appointments in the RCMP is now. Why wait for more problems to develop? Why allow the rank and file to be subject to further reasons for leaving the RCMP and joining other police organizations?

Darryl T. Davies, is an instructor in criminology and criminal justice, department of sociology and anthropology, Carleton University.