ATHABASCA – The Town of Athabasca is officially off the fence in the ongoing debate over who Alberta’s primary police force should be.
In a reversal of its previous position to maintain a neutral stance, Athabasca town council approved a motion July 12 to join the National Police Federation’s (NPF) call to action to the Alberta government. The police union’s call to action has been gaining momentum since its official release on June 27, with 66 municipalities and numerous other organizations coming on board since then.
“As the governing party chooses its next premier, there has never been a more important time to stand together in support of retaining the Alberta RCMP. Let’s cancel this transition, keep the RCMP in Alberta, keep taxes and costs low and work together to improve police services and the criminal justice system where it’s most needed,” stated the latest correspondence from the police union.
Previously, town council decided against taking a side and has been gleaning the information provided by all involved. Coun. Sara Graling said she was ready to take a side as council was preparing to accept the letter as information, to which the rest of council agreed in a 5-1 vote, with the lone vote against coming from mayor Rob Balay. Coun. Dave Pacholok was absent from the meeting.
“I personally still feel that I don't want to take a position one way or the other,” said Balay.
“I am ready to take a position,” said Graling. “I have been for a while. I was disappointed with the open house that was provided after the PricewaterhouseCoopers report. I think that there has been very little thought put into the process and very little information shared to provide assurance that this is a strategy worth pursuing.”
That concern was also expressed in the call to action from NPF.
“The Government of Alberta has lost the trust of its constituents in its pursuit of an Alberta Provincial Police Service (APPS) by not undertaking fulsome, open, and transparent consultations with all those affected. Albertans have stated loud and clear that they do not want a costly new police service, with an overwhelming 84 per cent of Albertans wanting to keep and improve the Alberta RCMP,” it reads.
“Some of the concerns I have they wouldn't even entertain at that open house, that wasn't the structure of the open house. I think we still continue to have deaf ears when we talk about concerns with this strategy, so I am ready to take the stand myself,” said Graling.
Balay went on to offer his thought that a provincial police force was going to be a foregone conclusion, as the federal government works to cut its own costs in the coming years.
“I believe this is going to happen whether we like it or not, I think it's going to be forced upon the province by the federal government and I think we're not going to have a choice, whether it be right now, or three years from now,” he said.
“The federal government has been talking about this for a long time and I just think that it's something that's going to be inevitable, so for me, I think it's sort of the cart before the horse, but that's my thinking.”
