The Victoria Politics Examiner has written before about the restructuring within Elections BC - which included the removal of the deputy chief electoral officer position, previously held by long-time deputy CEO Linda Johnson.
Since then, although it took him a while to get moving on the file, the NDP's Leonard Krog has been lightly holding interim chief electoral officer Craig James' feet to the fire over his decision to restructure. The answers that Krog has recieved so far haven't been exactly enlightening, as Andrew MacLeod at The Hook reports:
“It doesn't really answer the question,” the NDP's Krog said of James' Sept. 22 letter. “It doesn't put the issue to rest, quite frankly.”
“The organizational adjustments I have made will result in more efficiency, effectiveness, economy and responsiveness and advance the managerial capacity of Elections BC,” James wrote. “The changes I have made will offer better opportunities for emerging leaders within the office.
“I am confident that with the current structure, the office will be able to better execute its statutory mandate, a goal that will serve the interests of anyone who may hold the position of Chief Electoral Officer.”
Krog said James' response to his letter was bureaucratic and failed to explain what triggered the restructuring or why he felt the timing was right to make changes. “I would have liked to see a more fulsome response for the public,” he said. “He is in charge and I think he owes a duty to explain. That's what I asked him to do.”
Elections B.C. spokesperson Don Main said James won't be commenting on the matter beyond what James said in his letter to Krog.
Elections BC is supposed to be an independent body, and while I would not go so far as to suggest that Craig James is taking orders from the government, his lack of decent explanation for his actions raises unnecessary suspicions. Just answer the questions, already.
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