Rhino's Ramblings - Media Access And Baby Steps

By Robert Thomas Opinion\Commentary

It came as a surprise and with little fanfare but the Moose Jaw Board of Police Commissioners (MJBOPC) is now more open - albeit with restrictions - effective their meeting this past Thursday.

A tertiary look would say it is a good thing. A deeper probe would see it as nothing more than superficial.

Superficial and cosmetic but at the same time a big step forward compared to what has been happening at the MJBOPC meetings.

Meetings where the media had to sit and listen with no opportunity to ask questions.

If the media for instance missed a detail or needed greater clarification to write their stories you were out of luck.

What you were faced with was either taking the risk and writing the story with what you had - raising the specter of improper details or stories missing a pertinent detail that could lead to misunderstanding.

Or you could wait.

Days in fact.

Until the Chief of Police and other members of Moose Jaw Police Service's (MJPS) could schedule a meeting.

By then the story may well be old or since days have gone by its piling up with other stories.

The notes are there, the tape is there but it’s not fresh in the reporter's mind.

Having the opportunity to flesh out the details and get the story out sooner for a journalist is the way to go.

Although it is a great step forward there are some problems in my mind about the parameters set out in what is a three month trial run.

First off, really what are the parameters of the media scrum?

Is it restricted to the operations of the MJBOPC or does it also include the MJPS?

It is that blurred line between the employer and policy makers - the Board of Police Commissioners - and the MJPS who carry out the actual job of policing.

Believe me when I tell you I personally don’t want to hear the rah rah going on within the ranks of the MJPS.

I want to look at the mechanics of the MJBOPC and really not the actual street operations of the MJPS.

And that is where the new openess policy has it failures.

It’s restricted in what the media can ask.

It is based upon what is on the meeting's agenda- which in itself is great to clarify things - but by being static it means the media cannot ask about the major mechanics of the MJBOPC.

For instance what happens if something is topical in the MJBOPC's operations such as their budget but it’s not on the agenda?

Can you ask a question about it?

For me the likely answer is a resounding no.

But why is this important?

Take a look at the MJBOPC's January meeting where MJPS Chief Rick Bourassa said the preliminary Accumulated Surplus for 2022 operations was $290,000 surplus while at the same time the MJPS had requested $565,322 or a 5.58 percent increase for 2022 in order to combat growing crime.

It raises the question how does banking and investing money help in the battle against rising crime and violence generated by a festering drug problem?

If it does can you tell me how? How did you justify this to taxpayers?

At the Board of Police Commissioners’ January meeting Chief Bourassa promised to bring back the exact amount of surplus funds for 2022 plus the total amount in the Accumulated Surplus.

But guess what was not discussed in the public portion of the public meeting this past Thursday?

You got it - the Accumulated Surplus.

Now was it discussed in the in-camera (closed door portion) of the MJBOPC's meeting?

I don’t know.

And given that it was not discussed as part of the public meeting agenda the media can’t ask questions about it.

I have been told the MJPS's Accumulated Surplus was at one time over $750,000.

If true that’s a lot of money which could potentially be used to fund the MJPS's operations and lessen the taxpayer's load.

The only way to find out for sure just how much is in the MJPS's Accumulated Surplus account it seems is by filing a Local Authority Freedom of Information request.

Or how about the recent report about the Enhanced Patrol and how it will be part of the 2024 City of Moose Jaw operating budget discussion.

Although it is still topical - given it is going to be a budget item for 2024 - by it not being on the MJBOPC's agenda you guessed it there are no questions which can be asked about it.

Remember this pilot program was touted as being an “extra set of eyes and ears” for the police by the City.

Now the question to be asked is this true?

Did the MJBOPC and the MJPS see value in the Enhanced Patrol?

And if they do see a value just how much?

And also if there is a value to the MJPS could their budget - with that healthy Accumulated Surplus - not pay for at least some of it?

Now here is something to remember these are policy decisions and really not up to Chief Bourassa or MJPS Administration to approve that is the job of the MJBOPC.

So when and how do you ask them?

Under the rules of the MJBOPC's trial media scrum these are questions which may be topical.

May be relevant.

May fit into the operations of the Board of Police Commissioners but cannot be asked at their meeting.

Now don’t get me wrong I am not saying the opportunity of the media scrum is not a good one.

It’s a big step in the right direction when it comes to clarifying and expanding what is discussed in the public portion of the MJBOPC meetings but it is also lacking in its potential.