Canada News
Firing Election Commissioner didn’t save money, only saved Premier Kenney: NDP
The UCP raced to fire Gibson with the passage of Bill 22 in a matter of days – the Premier was in Texas for the duration of debate during the bill. Prior to his termination, Gibson has issued more than 0,000 in fines to people close to Premier Jason Kenney.
(File Photo: @jkenney/Twitter)
EDMONTON – Alberta’s Chief Electoral Officer, Glen Resler, confirmed during a committee meeting Friday that firing the Elections Commissioner did not save public dollars as the UCP claimed.
Resler confirmed during repeated questioning that, in fact, he was seeking roughly $100,000 more to take over the operations of Election Commissioner Lorne Gibson, who had been investigating the kamikaze campaign and alleged voter fraud during the UCP leadership race.
The UCP raced to fire Gibson with the passage of Bill 22 in a matter of days – the Premier was in Texas for the duration of debate during the bill. Prior to his termination, Gibson has issued more than $200,000 in fines to people close to Premier Jason Kenney.
“Today, it was made clear that Bill 22 wasn’t about saving money, it was about saving Jason Kenney,” said Heather Sweet, NDP Critic for Democracy and Ethics.
“The plot to cover up the crimes that Lorne Gibson was investigating continues. Albertans won’t stand for this Premier’s attack on our democracy.”
It was also made clear that 76 complaints made to the Election Commissioner had yet to be investigated at all.
The NDP Official Opposition will be proceeding with further complaints to the Ethics Commissioner about the UCP’s conflicts of interest and material interests concerning the passing of Bill 22.
