Murray Mandryk: Moe must go beyond tough talk

By Murray Mandryk

Premier Scott Moe has ben talking tough in the COVID-19.

Some of this tough talk was necessary. But other times, it was little more than talk that won’t change much at all.

Where Moe’s tough talk was most necessary and welcomed was his talk about getting tough with individuals and businesses defying the COVID-19 rules the rest of us are.

Moe has also talked about how the virus spread might be slowing in Saskatchewan, but the kindest thing one might say about such talk is that it’s a way too early.

Saskatchewan was doing well in the COVID-19 fight in December until “a Christmas bump,” Moe said, adding that the numbers have started to level out.

It is fair to say that the province is — at least as of the writing of this column — seeing somewhat steadier daily case counts of around 300 new cases a day.

However, Moe and his Saskatchewan government gloss over the reality that those numbers still translate into the most new cases per capita and most active cases per capita. It’s also quite likely that January will see more COVID-19-related deaths in Saskatchewan than any month. This follows a record number of Saskatchewan COVID-19-related deaths.

Moe should instead give us straight-forward talk on the entire situation so people will be more accepting of any tough measures that could might be needed.

But it’s also here where Moe’s tough talk of clamping down may be most appreciated.

Speaking to reporters at a press conference broadcast provincewide, Moe spoke passionately about getting calls and petitions from frustrated hockey parents over their kids not being able to play as grownups flout the COVID-19 rules by partying it up in bars.

Moe hit a strong note when he suggested that it is some adults who are acting like selfish and immature kids unwilling to take responsibility and that “harsher punishment” might be needed for such adults.

Credit Moe for pulling no punches here.

But let’s hope his Saskatchewan Party government is more than talk. Moe is dead right that a few businesses unwilling to follow the rules might be the very reason why other businesses and individuals would be stuck with even tighter restrictions. But it’s all rather meaningless if it’s not followed up by actions.

As they say, talk is cheap and, right now, we aren’t exactly seeing this government put more money towards enforcement to ensure that people are following the rules.

In fact, Moe didn’t even explain last week why his government won’t publicly name rule-breaking businesses in the same way it puts out news releases for small businesses that break occupational health and safety rules. Instead, the government seems to be relying on social media to do so.

Nevertheless, someone in the Premier’s chair threatening to get tough is sometimes all that’s needed to get people to fall in line. Maybe this is what’s needed to crack down on local rule breakers.

That said, it’s unlikely that tough works with those who are far removed from this jurisdiction.

That would surely be the case of Moe’s tough talk — borrowed from Ontario Premier Doug Ford — about “sticking a firecracker up the ying yang of the chief executive officer of Pfizer to encourage him to get vaccines to this country and his province sooner.

Maybe Moe’s frustration was sincere — even if it was just mimicking what Ford said. Clearly, Moe recognizes mass vaccination is key in this fight.

It might even be what people really want to hear. But, really, what good does it do?

Pfizer is an international company with $59 billion in annual revenues — four times that of Saskatchewan.

Do Moe or Ford think the president of Pfizer is going to be intimidated into getting drugs here fast?

Sometimes tough talk is needed. Sometimes, it’s just talk.