Political games overshadow problem

There is a new political dance heating up in the corridors of power in Ottawa.

It is closer in composition to a season of Dancing with the Stars than a professional ballet. In this case, however, the performers are politicians, not ballet dancers or B-list actors. But the consequences of losing are similar — eventually, there will be a vote, and someone will be sent home.

Misconduct in the upper echelons of Canada’s defence ranks is just the latest political two-step.

There have been 581 such reports in just the past five years alone, according to a recent media report. That news story also noted there were an additional 221 incidents of sexual harassment. Those numbers are staggering. There is a problem, and it does not start and stop with the regular members.

It seems logical, given years of failure by the military to deal with the problems internally, that the nation’s political leadership would step in to resolve the concerns. The realities are something altogether different.

Instead of working to solve the issues, the Liberals are side-stepping while Opposition parties line up for their shot at the limelight.

Political gain taking precedence over solving issues is getting tiresome and sexual misconduct allegations against Canadian Armed Forces membership and leadership remain deeply troubling.

And what do Canadians get in return? Political gamesmanship rather than good governance.

Erin O’Toole’s Conservatives want the head of Liberal Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s chief of staff, Katie Telford, on a spike and are calling for political staffers and even civil servants to testify in front of an ethics committee examining the misconduct allegations against Gen. Jonathan Vance. Vance faces allegations of inappropriate behaviour with two female subordinates. Telford was lined up to testify Friday afternoon. For those inclined to believe the motives of the Conservatives are pure, their demands on the Liberals for accountability are reasonable and overdue. It appears to be the correct angle since the Liberals want no part of it. The problem for the Tories — who, like many Canadians no doubt do want to see an end to sexual misconduct in the military — is that few people believe solving the problem is their primary motive. If it were, the cynical among us might suggest they should have done something about it when they were in power from 2006 to 2015.

There is a fundamental problem in our military, and it is our soldiers who continue to pay a price as leadership, both military and political, continue to waltz around the puzzle.

This show is growing dull. Canadians long for leadership that cares more about solving the nation’s problems than they do about personal gain or power and influence aspirations. The failure to fix the alleged misdeeds of military leaders is just the latest example of the growing partisanship in our political system.

None of these legislative performers in this dance deserve a win based on their performance, but someone will win. It just will not be Canadians or those serving in the military.