Standing up for farmers?
The Harper government has been using the phrase “Standing up for farmers” when it makes agricultural announcements. But I think “sticking it to farmers” is more realistic.
A case in point is the firing of Adrian Measner CEO of the farmer-controlled Canadian Wheat Board in 2006. Although farmers paid for Mr. Measner’s salary, the Conservatives fired him because he did not toe the Harper line on destroying the single desk. Not only did farmers have to pay for the severance of Mr. Measner but they also had to pay to search for a replacement and hire a new CEO at several times the annual salary of Mr. Measner.
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So although the Conservatives directly cost farmers millions of dollars, they have not had the decency to return the farmers’ money they wasted because of their ideology. At one point they claimed they would return the money to the pool accounts. However, that initiative vanished and the farmer-elected directors initiated a court action to recover that money on farmers’ behalf.
Farmers need to ask the present CEO if he is still pursuing that court case or have the government-appointed directors, his present masters, told him to abandon that case, be a good lap dog and wait for his next order from Minister Ritz?
Kyle Korneychuk
Former CWB elected director
Pelly, Sask.
Letters
