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8 C is H 7t In February, 1985, National Defence Minister Robert Coates became the first Mulroney Cabinet member to resign after The Citizen reported his visit to a West Gerâ€" man strip club. Communicaâ€" tions Minister Marce! Masse resigned from his post when it was revealed he was being inâ€" vestigated for alleged election spending _ irregularities. Fisheries Minister John Fraser resigned after a public disagreement with the Prime Minister over the recall of millions of cans of tainted tuna. Suzamnne Blaisâ€"Grenier, the former Environment Minister, was discredited after controverâ€" sy arose over her extensive European travels at governâ€" ment expense. She eventually resigned over the shutâ€"down of an oil refinery in East Montreal. Stevens‘ "lack of regard for propriety‘"‘ Prime _ Minister _ Brian Mulroney claimed that his "‘tight and tough"‘ conflict of inâ€" terest code introduced last September would preserve public confidence in the conâ€" duct of government business. But in the first serious test of those guidelines the governâ€" ment‘s handling of the situation left the public questioning the government‘s credibility and integrity. Sinclair Stevens‘ resignation is just one in a line of scandals involving the Mulroney cabinet. At the heart of the scandals is the question of judgement. Finally, there is Stevens‘ resignation on May 12, 1986â€"two weeks after his allegâ€" ed conflict of interest was made public. The Regional Industrial Expansion Minister‘s wife, Noreen Stevens, secured a $2.6 million interest free loan for one year for her husband‘s cashâ€"starved company, York Centre Corporation. The lender, Anton Czapka, was referred to Mrs. Stevens by Frank Stronach, Chairman of Magna, an auto parts firm that has received over $60 million in aid from the Department of Regional Industrial Expansion. Czapka was a major shareholder in Magna and presently works as a consulâ€" tant. ~Under Mulroney‘s guideline, Stevens had to place all of his holdings in a blind trust after being appointed Minister. The conflict of interest code specifies that a Minister must avoid all business dealings inâ€" volving assets held in trust. He or she must also avoid the apâ€" pearance of a conflict of inâ€" terest arising out of the business dealings of his or her Page 22 The Link June/1986 Ministers resigned Stevens resigns Stevens said he was aware of the $2.6 million loan only on April 29, 1986 when the loan was made public by The Globe and Mail. He showed he cared little about preserving the government‘s integrity by not resigning immediately. Instead, he retained his office even after it was obvious that he had comâ€" plete knowledge of the business dealings of a company that was supposedly held in a blind trust. He resigned only after public outrage forced him to step down. spouse and dependent children. Most Canadians find it difficult to reconcile how Stevens cowldâ€"not have know about ‘a ‘multiâ€"million dollar loan obtained by his own wife. Tough guidelines are meanâ€" ingless unless they are enforcâ€" ed, and the only person who can enforce them is the Prime Minister. Also, tough guidelines are _ meaningless when Ministers are unable to difâ€" ferentiate between right and wrong. Mulroney‘s refusal to demand his minister‘s resignaâ€" tion immediately when there was strong evidence that the conflict of interest code has been broken leads the public to seriously question this government‘s moral fibre. The stonewalling tactics of Mulroney and Deputy Prime Minister Erik Nielsen were enâ€" tirely consistent with Stevens‘ lack of regard for propriety in the government. By using "tough‘"‘ guidelines as evidence of a clean government, Mulroney and Nielsen miss the central issue. By John Nunziata ‘Tough‘ guidelines AT YORK MEMORIAL COLLEGE Are you interested in a more challenging and stimulating education? Do you like to learn independently with more responsibility for choice of subject matter? York Memorial C.1., with a long history of academic excellence and superior extracurâ€" ricular programme, has the option for you. The Enriched/Gifted Programme is unique. Grade 9‘s have the chance to take math, computers, physical science, English and history in a more exciting way. Field trips, speakers and interviews all make learning far less book oriented. The grade ten and eleven students continue to prepare for the challenges of the changing world. The school is conveniently located on Eglinton Ave. West at Keele. For more information please contact the Guidance Dept. at York Memorial C.1. 653â€"7200 ENRICHMENT/GIFTED PROGRAMME MP York South IT‘S NOT TOO LATE FOR ALL THIS ABAC A PEAK student is given advance lessons in visual arts. Students with a talent for the arts are being given a chance to express themselves at York‘s Kane Senior Public School. By Gail Hanney The grades 7 and 8 school ROOFING SYSTEMS 2764221 mm Kane students given creative edge Thirtyâ€"five students who have wil | shown creative potential by W _ grade six are chosen for the program. Students apply and O " are given an interview. This Sew, year 65 of Kane‘s 300 students applied for the two PEAK classes. located on Kane St. offers adâ€" vanced classes in music, drama, visual and industrial arts, and family studies for students with a leaning to the arts. PEAK students learn to play in a band, act in a play and next year hope to learn the art of puppeteering. Viceâ€"Principal Norm Newlands says the twoâ€"year program called PEAK (Program of Enriched Arts at Kane) was introduced this year to give creative students a chance to do things not offered in a regular program. PEAK students \ 1/ COILLE‘