The good, the evil and the olympic freebies

Kamloops is attracting national attention but not in the way it wants.

On Feb. 6, the Globe and Mail wrote an article, Mayors split on ethics, and even legalities, of accepting free tickets, about the good and the evil mayors of BC, with Peter Milobar, mayor of Kamloops, representing the dark side for accepting an Olympic package valued at a few thousand dollars.

The package includes: tickets to the opening ceremonies, box seats for a men's hockey game and accommodations in Vancouver.

"Sometimes there are things that only the mayor gets invited to," Milobar said in the article. Well that's good for him, perhaps he became mayor just for these opportunities, as cited in the article it is his responsibility as mayor to attend these corporate events.

Well at least he is getting Kamloops on the map by appearing in the Globe and Mail, but does he really think he can represent Kamloops by attending the events? It is not as if, the cameras will come swooping in on him as the announcer realizes Kamloops is in the house.

Where Milobar thinks this is his right as mayor to receive a few perks now and then, others beg to differ.

In the article, Attending Olympics shows support for a Kamloops company: mayor, Kamloops this week wrote about how Sharon Gaetz, mayor of Chillowack, not only thinks accepting gifts and freebies is morally wrong, it is illegal by violating the Community Charter.

I found the section in the community charter about restrictions on accepting gifts, and it seems that if the gift is for personal gain then the community politician receiving said gift, should not be fit for office. What part of cheering on the home team in a celebration is not about personal gain or enjoyment?