Democracy Gone Astray

Democracy, being a human construct, needs to be thought of as directionality rather than an object. As such, to understand it requires not so much a description of existing structures and/or other related phenomena but a declaration of intentionality.
This blog aims at creating labeled lists of published infringements of such intentionality, of points in time where democracy strays from its intended directionality. In addition to outright infringements, this blog also collects important contemporary information and/or discussions that impact our socio-political landscape.

All the posts here were published in the electronic media – main-stream as well as fringe, and maintain links to the original texts.

[NOTE: Due to changes I haven't caught on time in the blogging software, all of the 'Original Article' links were nullified between September 11, 2012 and December 11, 2012. My apologies.]

Showing posts with label Champlain Bridge Report. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Champlain Bridge Report. Show all posts

Saturday, October 29, 2011

NDP calls for release of Champlain Bridge reports

MONTREAL - The New Democratic Party is denouncing Ottawa’s decision to keep a lid on Champlain Bridge safety reports.

“It’s a question of public services,” said the NDP MP for Brossard-La Prairie Hoang Mai in an interview. “The government should not be playing games and hiding the truth from the people.”

Mai was reacting to a ruling by the government’s access to information and privacy office. The party submitted a request Aug. 9 for a copy of records submitted to ministers concerning the safety of the crumbling Champlain Bridge since July 1, 2010.

The office turned down the party’s request, invoking cabinet secrecy.

But Mai, who conceded they have no idea whether the safety reports are good or bad, said they should be public regardless.

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Thursday, July 14, 2011

Ottawa To Release Champlain Bridge Report

THE CANADIAN PRESS -- MONTREAL - Canada's new transport minister was forced to perform an abrupt about-face Wednesday after declaring that he did not want to release a structural report on a major Montreal bridge because people might worry.

The remarks by Denis Lebel were, of course, noticed in Montreal where 60 million vehicles cross the Champlain Bridge annually and make it one of the country's busiest spans.

His remarks became a top news story in Quebec. The bridge has been a source of public concern since the release this spring of another report that warned it's at risk of collapse.

With 24 hours the Prime Minister's Office made it clear that the rookie transport minister would have more to say on the matter.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper's office announced Wednesday morning that the bridge report would be released, after all.

By early afternoon Lebel had issued a statement stressing his personal commitment to transparency in the matter: "We want to ensure that Canadians have access to information about the Champlain bridge, and that is why the pre-feasibility technical report has been publicly released."

As it turned out, the report was not actually that alarming.

Full Article
Source: Huffington 
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