Pubdate: Sun, 01 Nov 2015
Source: Winnipeg Sun (CN MB)
Copyright: 2015 Canoe Limited Partnership
Contact: http://www.winnipegsun.com/letter-to-editor
Website: http://www.winnipegsun.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/503
Page: 10

LEGAL WEED SHOULD BE TRANSPARENT

Someone will need to watch over the looming marijuana industry in this
country.

Let's face it: Pot has been a moneymaking business in Canada for a
long time.

It just so happened the folks making money were often criminals,
either by definition or in reality.

Now, it's set to become a moneymaking industry of a different stripe -
for corporate Canada. (No jokes needed.)

If the Trudeau government goes ahead with its promise to legalize
recreational marijuana - and that remains an 'if,' for the moment -
there will be opportunity for some to reap significant profits.

Putting aside for a moment the arguments for and against legalization,
entrepreneurs making money is not a bad thing. It's at the heart of
free enterprise.

The trick will be not to feed public cynicism.

Medical marijuana providers are some of those poised to make a
killing, depending on how a new regime takes shape.

An argument can certainly be made ensuring the quality and safety of
marijuana is a burden best carried by those already producing a safe
product for the medical market, despite the complaints some users have
made about the quality of what they receive.

It's just one argument, mind you. Others will say the production
should be democratized, opened to anyone so inclined. Regardless,
there will be debate over who can legally grow it.

The case of Liberal CFO Chuck Rifici, outlined in Thursday's Sun,
highlights, in our view, the need for scrutiny over this industry,
should the government fulfill its promise. Perhaps, as suggested by
one watchdog, that should come in the form of an ethics czar.

This is not because Rifici has done anything wrong. He's invested well
and stands to do well accordingly. But when this industry that could
bring in billions of dollars a year is in its infancy, the Liberals
should show full transparency to make sure patronage is not at play in
terms of who gets to reap the rewards of their political decision.

It's the kind of thing that erodes public faith, when those in certain
circles profit most from government decisions.

To be above reproach, the government can't have this decision, or the
process that follows it, shrouded in a haze.
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MAP posted-by: Matt