Editorial (The Province) – The news that a Surrey, B.C. Mountie is facing 15 criminal charges couldn’t have come at a worse time for our embattled national police force. Still reeling from the flak resulting from the brutal death of Polish immigrant Robert Dziekanski at Vancouver International Airport, the RCMP is fighting to re-establish its once glorious reputation as a well-governed organization that serves and protects Canadians.
Arguably the biggest crime issue that Surrey, Vancouver and the other Lower Mainland municipalities face these days revolves around drugs and guns.
Yet here is an RCMP constable accused of a slew of drugs and weapons offences. It doesn’t look good at all. And it undoubtedly bolsters the argument of those who want to replace the RCMP with provincial police forces.
The current police services contract between B.C. and the RCMP expires in 2012, and the two are reportedly close to reaching a new 20-year pact. And it all seems like business as usual, especially with this month’s appointment of Assistant Commissioner Peter Hourihan as the province’s new RCMP chief.
The public, though, is being kept in the dark over the results of an audit of the RCMP’s performance in this province. Solicitor-General Rich Coleman recently said the audit wouldn’t be released until negotiations for the new policing agreement are substantially complete.
But we agree with B.C. Civil Liberties Association executive director Dave Eby who told The Province the secrecy surrounding this multibillion-dollar contract is “unacceptable.”
The problem with the RCMP is not confined to a few bad apples. The rot runs deeper. It involves a system-wide lack of accountability to those who pay its bills, namely regular taxpayers.
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