Ontario Casino Funds: Where Does the Money Go?

Over the past decade, Ontario's Casino Rama has raised over a billion dollars to help benefit dozens of the province's native bands. This is good. But there is little or no tracking of where the money goes or how it is spent. This is not so good.

“First of all, it's not the taxpayers' money, it's First Nations' money,” says Steve Williams, spokesman for the Ontario First Nations Limited Partnership. “Why would we account for money that belongs to us?”

I actually agree with the notion that First Nations groups are not accountable to the government when it comes to detailing the use of the casino funds. But they should be accountable to their own people. Williams offers the analogy that GM doesn't have to justify its activities, but this is patently untrue. While GM directors or senior management may not have to prove to the government that they are going the "right thing" with company money, they do have justify themselves to shareholders. And if shareholders feel that abuses are taking place, there is some discretion to react. Natives faced with conditions of poverty or seeking to attain self-sufficiency are de-facto shareholders and are owed an honest account of how this money is distributed and used.

There's no way of knowing if any abuses are taking place akin to those that happened among the Saskatchewan Indian Gaming Authority.

Auditor-General Fred Wendel reported in December 2004 that about $500,000 in questionable receipts included a trip to Calgary for 17 senior staff; concert and sports tickets for senior management and customers; $95,000 for golf tournament entry fees, and cash spent for golf clubs and clothing.

However, the staggering amount of money in play and the consequences for those who may not receive a fair share do seem to justify the need for openness and accountability.

Casino cash cow for native bands [Globe and Mail]

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