Wrong step after wrong step, Derek Fildebrandt has finally taken a right one.
The Strathmore-Brooks MLA resigned Tuesday from the fledgling UCP caucus after more revelations of questionable judgment came to light.
Already under fire for renting out his taxpayer-funded apartment while pocketing the cash and double-claiming meals, Postmedia reported on two more troubling situations: Fildebrandt had shared accommodations with another Wildrose MLA with both claiming a housing allowance, possibly for the same dwelling. And it’s been revealed that he is facing charges over an alleged hit-and-run.
It all reflects poorly on Fildebrandt, especially — and incredulously — given his long-standing vigilance against wasteful government spending.
But beyond the possible damage done to his political future, Fildebrandt has also taken a chunk out of the UCP’s brand. It can ill afford that, given the party is still in its infancy. Carrying a boatload of baggage from both former parties and a growing rift over who will lead the new one, the UCP needs to assure its members and upcoming potential voters of its moral compass.
It needs to prove it has firmly closed the door on skeletons hanging in the closet, from hard-right stands on social issues (the Wildrose’s “Lake of Fire”) to flagrant spending controversies (Alison Redford’s “sky palace”). It doesn’t need an ethics controversy to now come knocking.
Fildebrandt’s decision to quit the UCP puts the party’s needs ahead of his own. It’s too bad he didn’t follow that path from the start.
