Measure twice, cut once-a cliché as old as time itself and yet one in which Doug Ford appears unfamiliar.
The Ontario premier seemed all too gung ho to release his strengthened stay-at-home orders on April 16. Among those were to close playgrounds and give police the authority to stop pedestrians and motorists to demand proof of address and reason for being out of the house. Less than 48 hours and a huge public backlash later, he reneged on those orders, promptly ordering playgrounds be re-opened and walking back his direction to the police. After hearing it from all sides of the province, including from within his own circle, Ford issued an apology. Better than nothing, but the damage had been done.
In his haste to slow skyrocketing COVID-19 numbers across the province Ford failed to actually look at where transmissions were taking place. For many parents already scrambling to keep their kids busy and active during yet another round of virtual schooling, playgrounds are a sanctuary. They provide an opportunity to let kids burn off some energy in a setting that has been proven to be low risk of COVID-19 infection. Already deprived of social interaction with their friends at recess, anything that lets kids be kids in a safe environment is crucial at this point of the pandemic. Meanwhile police were quick to distance themselves from the premier’s heavy-handed approach to keeping people home.
Several detachments across the province took to social media to inform citizens they had no desire to randomly stop them and demand to know where they’re going or where they came from. They did however continue to commit to reacting to calls of large gatherings, which has shown to be a major cause of increased infection rates. In lighter times a mistake by a premier would be a nice gift for his critics-his infamous dark blue license plate comes to mind. A major miscue during at the height of the worst disaster most people will likely see in their lifetime however is anything but a laughing matter.
Ford’s haste is all the more surprising when members of his Science Table had been calling for action months before the latest wave. Had earlier action been taken, it’s quite possible the premier wouldn’t be scrambling to try and regain control of the situation. His response wasn’t only late, it was misguided. A quick consultation with medical experts and members of law enforcement would have prevented him from having to backtrack on playgrounds and police stops. To his credit he was quick to admit his mistake and correct it but the whole circus did little to inspire confidence.
To expect a perfect response during a never-before-seen emergency would be unfair. But it’s certainly within reason to demand the party in power at least seek out the best possible information before making a decision. To really show he’s learned from this fiasco, and is truly sorry, he’ll have to show a willingness to listen to the experts when it comes to his next step. This time the stakes are much higher than the colour scheme of a license plate.
Adam Prudhomme