Citizens, not "stakeholders", Government, not "business"

Nov 05, 2014

In the wake of the election in North Frontenac, I want to congratulate your paper on your excellent coverage of the campaign, and wish the new mayor and councillors well. A word of caution, however, about the notion that municipal government is "a business", and that we, the residents, are its "stakeholders" or "customers".

The word "business" implies a commercial venture geared to profit and run for the benefit of private interests – those of its owners or investors. Government, at any level, is a completely different animal. Yes, governing involves money – taxes and fees to finance the services provided – and it certainly requires financial planning and responsibility. But that does not make it a "business."

As residents of North Frontenac, of Ontario, and of Canada, we are citizens, with rights and responsibilities, including involvement in the decisions that affect our lives and those of our children and grandchildren. In a democracy, each one of us has an equal voice in how we are governed, regardless of our economic or social status. It is both inaccurate and belittling to reduce our status to that of "customers," "stakeholders," or "taxpayers," all of which are much narrower concepts involving commercial, financial, or other specified transactions.

The purpose of government is to serve the common good, the public interest. Of course, governments can borrow useful tools and insights from businesses, as indeed they can (and should) from non-commercial sources as well – science, history, faith traditions, the arts, the cycles and lessons of nature itself. But again, they are no more "businesses" than they are scientific endeavours, forms of worship, or works of art.

Let us steer clear of narrow and mistaken concepts that restrict our vision and limit our ability to fully engage with our fellow citizens and those we have elected to govern us.

Helen Forsey