Canada First Model - Reforming the Federal Government

 

Stavely, Alberta (photo by V.A. McMillan)

Canada First Model – Federal Government

 

In previous posts I have explored reforms for the Department of National Defence (https://mtnmanblog.blogspot.com/2021/04/future-cf-structure-from-partisan.html) and proposed a Canada First Model for Canada’s Army, Navy, and Air Force (https://mtnmanblog.blogspot.com/2021/06/canada-first-model-land-assets.html , https://mtnmanblog.blogspot.com/2021/05/canada-first-model-for-national-defence.html , https://mtnmanblog.blogspot.com/2021/07/canada-first-model-for-national-defence.html). Now it is time to make suggestions for the federal government.

Is anyone else sick and tired of the partisan politics and absolute corruption of our current system of government? Is there a different way to structure government?? A way that does not seem like a total waste of our taxpayer’s dollars?? A method that is less easily corrupted and exploited by career politicians?? Would this be a conversation worth exploring??

Recently, I overheard a discussion that explored fragments of this discussion topic. Thus, while I may take the bull by the horns and run off on a tangent, some of the core ideas are not my invention. I am merely sharing a version that I believe would be a good starting point for further discussion and to develop a better solution than our current corrupted, exploited system of governance.

The single key concept is a sequestered, citizen, body of government.

This new interpretation of a representative government would be based on citizen service to their country and fellow citizens. I will present one of many possible versions that could be implemented.

To flesh out the concept here is a quick sketch of the organizational structure:

Org Chart - Sequestered Civic Service

If we retained the tradition of a constitutional monarchy we would keep a Governor General as the monarch’s representative in Canada – basically a figurehead position that is symbolic.

The Prime Minister and the Deputy Prime Minister would be the only “elected” positions in government, for the express duty of being the person(s) who will represent Canada and the Canadian government. These representatives would be the best of the best and would never behave in a manner to bring shame to our nation.

The Senate and the Parliament would be staffed by Canadian citizens who would be sequestered into their positions to serve Canada and Canadians. This would be a term of civic servitude that would last up to four (4) years; and a Canadian citizen could not be asked to serve more than two terms in a lifetime; regardless if this service was at the federal or provincial level. A citizen could in theory be sequestered to serve a term in the Senate and the Parliament, or the federal and provincial Parliament, or the federal Senate and provincial Parliament.

Eligible Canadian citizens would include natural born Canadians and those who have lawfully immigrated to Canada and become citizens. Corporations, illegal aliens, and any other non-human entity could not become a member of government.

Once the transition to the new form of government had been made, rotation of periods of service would be offset. Meaning that no more than 50% of the government would be replaced at any one time. Thus, a four (4) year period of service would include two (2) years with one cohort and two (2) years with another cohort. The theory being, that the living wisdom of government operations would not die every four (4) years. However, it may be necessary to keep a “clean up” clause in the founding documents to allow for recall in the event that corruption infiltrates the program, and a restart is required to preserve the Canadian way of life.

One of the first pieces of legislation would be the “Sequestered Services Act” which would establish into law that Canadian citizens sequestered into service of their nation would be required to be given an absence from their current employer and would guarantee a return to employment upon release from their civic duty.

Finally, since Canadian citizens would be required to serve their country, they would be paid for their service, housing would be provided, and transportation costs would be covered during their term of service. Since sequestered citizens may not know everything about their assignment they would be expected to consult with the citizens from their area to learn the consensus of the constituents, when voting on items before the government.

How would you structure this new governance system?

The federal Senate would provide representation by province or territory. This would be equal representation in the form of two representatives for each province or territory, creating an Upper House of 26. As the Upper House (Senate) is the check and balance to the Lower House (Parliament), this would ensure that any legislation was reviewed and confirmed to be in the best interest of Canada, not just one region or city.

The federal Parliament would be organized by federal areas of responsibility. For the sake of this discussion, I have created ten (10) federal areas of responsibility:

·       National Defence

·       First Nations Liaison

·       Communications

·       Foreign Affairs

·       Taxation

·       Citizenship

·       Justice

·       Treasury

·       Transportation

·       Industry & Innovation

While my first attempt to assign representatives was based on:

·       Pacific region x1

·       Prairie region x1

·       Central region x1

·       Maritime region x1

·       North region x1

I would consider increasing the number of representatives from Central region to two (2) representatives. Therefore, in my first iteration the Lower House would have fifty (50) representatives, while the amended version would have sixty (60).

Change the location of the Seat of Power

In keeping with other models of corporate or government change, it would be advisable to move the Nation’s capitol to prevent a rapid regression back to the old corrupt ways. To ensure a new start and a fresh outlook on Canada’s future I would recommend relocating the new Canadian Parliament to McKenzie Island, on Red Lake, Ontario.

Red Lake from Ottawa

McKenzie Island is a near perfect location and represents equality in a truly Canadian fashion…this location would upset all Canadians equally because it is…

·       Too far West to be Eastern Canada

·       Too far East to be Western Canada

·       Too far North to be Southern Canada, &

·       Too far South to be Northern Canada

PERFECT!

Red Lake, ON in Relation to Highway #17

McKenzie Island in Red Lake, Ontario

This location is also a strategic and tactical nightmare for most attackers, against the government. Which means it is a good location to sequester Canadian citizens for their term of civic service. However, several infrastructure upgrades would be required.

·       The highway system into Red Lake would need to be at minimum two-lanes in each direction. Easiest solution would be to build a new four-lane divided highway into the area, that would join Highway #17 just West of Vermillion Bay, Ontario.

Possible Route for Proposed Highway

·       Red Lake would need to be serviced by a twinned rail line, to bring in bulk deliveries.

·       Fibreoptic service would be required from Red Lake to North Bay. A connection into the World Wide Web would be polite.

·       Either a power generation station would need to be located near Red Lake or underground power delivery would be needed to ensure electrical service to the seat of government.

·       Two airports would be needed for servicing travel requirements of the sequestered civic employees. One would need to be an international airport. The other would want to be a military airport.

·       A Canadian Forces base would want to be located within one tactical bound of the Red Lake, with all the necessary defence technologies and staff to protect a nation’s capitol city.

·       The National Emergency Operations Centre would be located on McKenzie Island, preferably in a hardened, subterranean bunker system.

The current Parliament Hill complex in Ottawa, Ontario would be preserved as a national museum and archives. It would likely become a very popular tourist destination.

This is just the first look and exploration of the concept of employing sequestered Canadian citizens into civic duty as an effective replacement to the current, corrupt, exploited system of governance. I hope this has given you cause to pause and reflect on what possible solutions are needed to keep Canada from being corrupted and tarnished in the eyes of Canadians and citizens of the world.

Until next time…listen for ideas to stir your imagination!

Mountainman.