Why are government announcements – or pronouncements – often given more weight than the actual content of the announcement? Yesterday’s carefully choreographed revelation that a new health care facility will be built in Dawson appears to have been more about the sizzle than the steak. This is an important bit of infrastructure that has been promised on again and off again for many years, yet everyone was notified only the day before Mr. Nordick’s and Minister Cathers’ press conference at the Nursing Station on Friday. Looking at it from a political point of view I can see that it’s important to be seen as fulfilling a mandate with these staged proclamations. In my opinion this is an old fashioned style of governance held over from the fifties and a waste of energy. Why not just start the work without the posturing and fanfare? More importantly, begin consulting with Dawson stakeholders to develop a sustainable solution that will leave an enduring legacy for future generations.
Frankly this kind of thing always raises questions in my mind regarding the value of party politics and top-down governance – a topic for future discussion. Yukoners and our government should be reminded that the money which is filtered and dispensed by YTG is money that belongs to all of us. It is not there to use as a political opportunity or profile building.
It’s all about the sizzle!
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What bothered me most was the following statements, which could only be said to be true if you were referring to the last election campaign and nothing else. We have all seen the drawings of the last abortive attempt to address this issue. It WAS a combined facility and there’s just no point in saying that the joint replacement has never been committed to before.
“Originally, we had committed to replacing MacDonald Lodge,†Cathers said, referring to promises made during the last territorial election.
“Today, we are pleased to announce that the Yukon government will build a new health centre in Dawson City and a new care facility to replace MacDonald Lodge,â€
“This is the first time that the government has committed to replacing not only Macdonald Lodge but the Health Care facility,†Cathers said.